George Epp was first introduced to woodturning in an eighth-grade shop class at Casey Junior High in Boulder. During this class, Epp made his first pieces of wood-turning art, including a bowl and a gavel, which remain in his possession.

Life began to intervene, making Epp’s woodturning practice dormant for many years, though he continued to educate himself via books and a subscription to American Woodturner magazine.

It wasn’t until he retired from public safety in 2007 that he bought his first lathe. Half his two-car garage turned into a workshop equipped with a lathe, bandsaw, table saw, hand tools, and dust collection equipment.

He began working with wood from the mountain pine beetle epidemic ravaging Colorado’s lodgepole forests. The blue-black stains left by the beetles in the wood are part of the features.

Epp says, “Lodgepole wood has little commercial value because it tends to crack as it dries.” With this in mind, and at his wife’s suggestion, he developed a technique to add inlay to the cracks, using turquoise stones.”

He experimented with different ways to set the stones in the cracks, followed by a way to achieve a suitable finish. “I gradually found better sources for the turquoise and new, and better, materials and techniques to set them. I’m pretty happy with the technique I have now but I still look for ways to make it better.”

“I hadn’t thought of myself as an artist as I developed my skills and techniques, but sometime around 2010, I had given a piece to a family member, and he remarked, ‘You’re an artist.’ It dawned on me that maybe I was,” Epp confesses.

Epp strives to create forms that are “both pleasing to the eye and also evoke traditional shapes used by Native American, Asian, and other artists.” Most of his work is decorative but includes functional pieces, such as bowls and vases.

Epp realizes the importance of taking his time while he creates. Slowing down ensures that he enjoys the process. He likes listening to KUVO Jazz Radio while he works, claiming, “It helps me focus.”

Epp spent 30 years with the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office, including 12 years as the elected sheriff of Boulder County. Since his retirement, he spends most of his days in his shop.

Epp plans to continue applying for the necessary yearly cutting permit from the Forest Service to find enough suitable wood (sometimes including dead aspen) to continue woodturning.

“The aspen is quite different from the beetle kill pine but also has some hidden beauty that is fun to bring out,” shares Epp. In general, he loves the look and feel of wood.

“It never ceases to amaze me to see the beautiful patterns develop in a piece of wood as I turn a rough log into a bowl, vase, or hollow form. Each piece I make brings me a spark of joy, and I hope it will do the same for someone else.”

Epp’s father, “a committed amateur photographer,” passed away 10 years before Epp began woodturning. Epp hopes his father would be proud of his work.

George Epp’s art is displayed at The Old Gallery in Allenspark. You can find more information at http://www.woodturningbygeorge.com/ or you can give him a call at 303-579-5456.

Sign up as an artist or sponsor for The Mountain-Ear’s Studio Tour September 22-24, 2023, at www.themtnear.com/peak-to-peakstudiotour-2023/.