Spoon Carving Workshop with Artist Kate Hawes — A Queering Wood Craft Program
June 6 @ 10:00 am - 1:00 pm
Spoon Carving Workshop with Artist Kate Hawes — A Queering Wood Craft Program | Sat. June 6, 2026 | 10:00 am – 1:00 pm ET | In-person | NextFab – 1800 N American St, Philadelphia
Celebrate Pride and carve a spoon! In this workshop you will shape a spoon’s curvy contours with two traditional Swedish carving tools, the Sloyd knife and the hook knife. We will work with precut green wood spoon blanks that are supple with the moisture from the tree they came from. Safe practices and effective wood removal will be taught in a series of knife moves that will be practiced with body awareness. Come participate in this satisfying hand craft of whittling wood with others.
ABOUT KATE HAWES
Kate Hawes is a woodworker based in Woodstock, New York whose work includes furniture, carved spoons, and wooden wares for the home. They are an educator who enjoys sharing their skill and passion with others. In 2024, they founded The Ulster Spoon Jam, a community spoon carving event. They have taught classes in woodworking at the Makeville Studio, Peters Valley School of Craft, the American Folk Art Museum, SUNY Purchase, North Bennet Street School, Haystack, Snowfarm, Cottage Courses, and the Hudson River Maritime Museum and Boat School. They completed a certificate in cabinet and furniture making from the North Bennet Street School and a Masters in Critical Craft Studies from Warren Wilson College.
ABOUT QUEERING WOOD CRAFT
In 2021, the Museum launched an international, artist-led roundtable for LGBTQIA+ woodworkers to foster discussion about the intersection of queer identity and woodworking. The initiative aims to address a lack of research in the field while increasing visibility and community for marginalized queer artists working with the material of wood. This workshop is the first of many auxiliary programs leading up to the Queering Wood Craft, a landmark exhibition, highlighting LGBTQIA+ woodworking artists. The culmination of this project will be a 3-month exhibition—the first and largest of its kind—opening in May 2027.
Questions? Contact Katie Sorenson, Director of Outreach and Communication at katie@museumforartinwood.org.
