Art Espenet Carpenter,

self-taught California master furniture maker passed on recently. He built his unassuming shop on the road into Bolinas in 1957 and continuously developed a recognisable style that has entered collections all over the world - including the Smithsonian. He and a bunch of Bay Area craftsmen formed the Baulinas Craftmans Guild that provided a structure for young woodworkers to apprentice in small shops.

He specialized in Claro Walnut, mostly because it was locally available, beginning with bowl turning. (From an interview found on the net) "You don't have to know anything to work with wood. If you're working with metal or ceramics, you have to know some chemistry. All I need is two tools. a crosscut saw and a lathe."

Art always had some humorous cutting observation to make about life. We saw him at Sunday breakfast on the deck overlooking the Bolinas Lagoon at the local Rod and Boat Club. When I was just beginning to become a serious woodworker, I took my first efforts of outdoor redwood furniture to him for approval. Yes, he was kind and patient and would point out only the good points.

Once mentioned here in the forum as a cautionary that whenever I went into his shop I never saw him wearing a dust mask. And he smoked too.

It was right across the road at Ed Letter's that the beautiful 48' Eldridge-McGuiness knockabout schooner, Elisabeth Muir, was built by John Linderman and Babe Lamerdin. (Ten years of weekends - with the salami at lunch and the french bread and spicey limericks sliced on the Walker-Turner.) A true masterwork as well. Ahh, those were the days....

ebb: Was the gentleman building the Elizabeth Muir a long time employee at the St Francis Yacht Club? I recall driving out twice with a friend who knew him well to watch progress I'm sure on that boat. She was taking shape under a big plastic covered frame next to a friendly funky house. This was about 20 years ago, and I think he was in his late 60s early 70s then. Fun memory whether I've got the right boat or not. It was amazing seeing these few old timers tackling such a big project. Lots of fun casual humor too.

Are they still stealing the road signs guiding to Bolinas? :D

That was Babe. John L. was the lead, so to say - he had built boats at Stones yard in its heyday - but the whole West Coast wood boat building community had a hand in building Babe's boat, the Muir, all out of friendship and love for a great guy and perhaps for an era that is now gone.

Babe worked at the St. Francis. Once got a tour of the Athena he cared for.
And told the story here once of Athena's new carbon fiber boom that had the most perfect trompeloi paint job on it that transformed it into a 30 coat varnish spruce spar down to a few weeping phoney screw plugs. The owner imported the artist from Italy to do it.

Babe was a leading member in the Spike Africa Consortium that skippered the best and greatest and grandest yachts of that time in Pacific Ocean history. Somebody should have written a book about them by now. Babe also did beautyful marine carvings. But even more important: he could tell a joke that would leave you writheing on the floor. No man ever lived who could do it better! Honest. Linderman at 80 knew every off color limerick ever conceived. But Babe could pull the most perfect and appropriate off color foible out of some vast improbable and improper register of the human condition.

Art's humor was laid way back in quick reality quips and dusty puns.

Peter Wilhite, son of the former owner of 63' S&S yawl Athene, introduced me to him at the club. As Pete's dad got older he decided to sell Athene to Chris Shroll because he could afford to keep her up. Last I heard of Athene, Chris had her shipped to the Med...maybe she's back in row #1 now. Really glad I had 3 wonderful sails on her.

Those trips to Bolinas were neat. They treated Peter like a member of the family. The first time out they only had the hull frames up, and man were they massive. They'd stop and tell tales, have us in the house for coffee, whatever. Just one swell bunch! Thanks for the fine memory! :)