Exhile Woodworking
by Lew Larason
Joshua David Dukeman, woodworker and owner of Exile Woodworking, chose Joshua David as his artistic name. Joshua studied engineering at Drexel for two years and changed his studies to art and design. Joshua also studied woodworking at Bucks County Community College and art at the Tyler School of Art, While taking courses he worked for a friend who was a builder and in 2010, he decided to open his own shop in Doylestown, which he designed and built himself.
Exile Woodworking’s workshop is two stories. The lower area is 30 feet by 20 feet, while the upper floor is 30 by 15, giving him about 1500 square feet of work space. His main tools are in the ground floor area. They include a table saw with extra bed surface to help when cutting large pieces of wood, a chop saw for quick cut-offs, an 8-inch jointer, a 20-inch thickness planer, a lathe with an outboard connection for large bowl turnings, a drill press, a spindle shaper and an 18-inch band saw, along with lots of hand tools. He said the band saw really is great. He can add a very narrow blade, slow down the speed, and use it like a scroll saw.
An interesting piece of equipment is the vacuum press. This can hold a piece as large as 4 feet by 8 feet, the size of a sheet of plywood, and develops over 100 psi pressure. This tool is used to glue items together with Titebond T3. He aligns the joints and applies the vacuum. He also uses it to glue veneers and to bend laminated curved pieces.
Customers find Joshua. “I get my jobs from word-of-mouth, repeat clients, galleries and the Internet. I do shows in at least eight states, mostly during the warm weather, where I pick up more.” He added, “I have a good customer in Rochester, New York. He found me when I was doing an arts festival in that area.”
He works closely with his clients so everyone is pleased when a job is finished. “My customers come with pictures from a magazine or photos and want me to design from there. At other times, they just will have an idea. I listen to them and design what they want.”
Joshua said that sometimes when he designs something new and wants to be sure it’s as good as possible, he will build it and then take it apart so he can examine everything to see where it could have been improved. “That may sound drastic,” he said. “But, I want to look for any weaknesses in design and function. I want my pieces to be both artistic and functional.”
Joshua uses local woods most of the time, usually from within a 60 to 100 mile radius. Much of it comes from Bucks County Hardwoods located in Doylestown. “They specialize in flitch-sawn walnut, which I use often,” he said. He needs to go out of the area for the exotic woods he uses occasionally. But most of his items are crafted from local walnut, cherry, maple and the like.
When he uses a flitch-cut piece, it generally is as the top for a table, bench or stool. He carefully cleans the rough edge while leaving it as natural as possible. This allows it to dictate the shape of the finished item. If there is a crack or opening that needs to be stabilized, he usually adds one or more butterflies as needed. A butterfly is a double dovetail in shape. Some say it looks like a bow tie.
However, most of the time, when he inserts them, they are free flowing and very fluid in shape. He said, “Most woodworkers use a router and jig to cut out the traditional shaped butterfly. I spend a little more time and design a free flowing butterfly. Then, I set it in the surface by cutting out with a chisel and mallet. It takes longer but is worth the time.” He said, “When I set in butterflies, because of their flowing shapes, they look more like real butterflies than the traditional ones.” Joshua uses contrasting colored wood for the inserts. If a top is walnut, the butterflies will be maple or cherry. The contrasting wood colors are part of his design.
Sometimes, when there is a blemish or hole in the surface of a top, he fills it with a mixture of epoxy and colored powders. “This adds a touch of color where you don’t expect it. I even have put a few sparkles in the bottom of a hole.”
Most of his designs incorporate mortice and tenon joints. Usually, the tenons are through tenons, meaning they go through the top, leg or whatever they’re attached to. Although this is a classic joint, Joshua adds his touch by going through and then adding a wedge to tighten the joint using a contrasting colored wood for the wedge.
Some of his table tops that Joshua makes have breadboard ends. These are pieces of wood that go across the end grain of the top at each end. They are attached with floating tenons. He explained, “If I glued these pieces in place, the top would split as the wood dries and expands with the changing weather. Although the wood is well dried, it still is affected by moisture in the air and moves back and forth widthwise, when it takes up a little moisture and then dries out.”
He pointed out that the ends are pegged at each outside corner to keep it in place. That way the wood can move between the pegs.
Joshua works with other local craftsmen when he has a project outside of his workshop. He designs and installs kitchens and restores rooms in homes and offices. He and his craftsmen friends do special customized hardwood floors. He can mill new or reclaimed wood to suit your taste and space. You can see a 100-year-old reclaimed wood floor in his studio.
Joshua enjoys designing and working with clients while crafting functional art. “We can make everything from cutting boards to complete kitchens and turned wood bowls to kitchen tables and chairs.” He creates several accessories mostly using local woods. “I often make cutting boards keeping the natural edge of a flitch-sawn piece of wood. When I can, I like to use fruitwoods such as apple, cherry or peach. I recently was able to get a downed pear tree. I’m looking forward to working with this wood.” All of his kitchenware is finished with a natural food-safe oil and wax.
His finish on furniture is tung oil. Joshua rubs in four to six coats of finish, more than most would use. But, as he pointed out, “My finish is very durable. I once had a dining table at a show when it was caught in heavy rain. After the storm had passed, I tipped the table and the water ran off. It left no damage or evidence of having been wet. That finish will hold up well in a kitchen.”
When he designs, he uses a drawing board and pens, saying, “I have found I can compose better this way. Thoughts seem to flow better from my mind to the pen. I’ve tried using a computer. But, I think better with a drawing board in front of me.”
Joshua calls his business Exile Woodworking because, “Several of my early mentors were sort of exiles. They were from African and Eastern European countries. They weren’t really exiles, but had left their homelands for a better life. Also, I feel that hand-crafted art like I create is being replaced by mass produced inferior products, which makes art seem like it is in exile.”
For more information about Exile Woodworking, call 267-614-4830 or visit www.exilewoodworking.com.
Lew Larason is a freelance writer who specializes in antiques and furniture.