It's easy to talk to Seth Rolland, the Port Townsend woodworking artist. He has a ready smile, a gentle demeanor, a welcoming attitude.

But the primary way he thinks and communicates is with his hands. Rolland is a master woodworker, an artist in the medium of wood, whose handiwork is of such unique quality that the Bellevue Arts Museum is holding a rare solo exhibition that opens to the public on May 20, and runs until Aug. 15.

Rolland, who has been setting up the exhibit since last week, gives a slide-show talk at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, June 15.

"Balance and Tension: The Furniture of Seth Rolland" features 25 of Rolland's pieces created over the past six months, plus some pieces borrowed from clients. These works highlight how he transforms wood and even rock into furniture pieces that defy standard designs and incorporate light and space, made possible through a mastery of kerfing and other techniques.

Here's how the curator of Rolland's show at the Bellevue Arts Museum, museum director Stefano Catalani, put it:

"His singular mastery of the kerfing technique is possibly the most distinctive element of his work. Traditionally used by luthiers to bend the lining of string instruments, kerfing is, in simple terms, the act of making a series of closely placed cuts in a piece of wood so that the material can be curved. Rolland pushes this technique against the grain of the expected. Long cuts executed with extreme precision allow for a single block of wood to be expanded — not unlike an accordion — in several directions at once. The results are mind-bending."

Catalani praised how "Rolland's insistence on forthrightly revealing how his furniture is built turns structure into art."

Rolland's technique takes advantage of steam bending, lamination and vacuum forming, and he works hard to create furniture with little or no glue or joinery. Rolland noted that kerfing is ancient in the Northwest, often used in the creation of Native American cedar boxes. "The technique creates a flexibility in something by lots of cuts," he said.

Rolland worked his way up to the Bellevue Arts Museum solo exhibit. In 2014, he entered a table in the "Knock on Wood"

exhibit, to which 40 wood artists were invited, and won the John and Joyce Price Award of Excellence. Another prize was an invitation to have the solo show.

For his art, Rolland takes inspiration from the natural world, according to Catalani. Some pieces suggest geological formations. Some mimic the swarming legs of an insect or the growth pattern of tree roots.

The inspiration for his furniture, Rolland wrote, is to be a melding of art and furniture. "I believe furniture can fit you perfectly, both in form and function, and still be creative, beautiful and fun to live with," he wrote. "From inspiration to finish, I personally handcraft all of my custom furniture, one piece at a time, from the finest sustainable hardwoods. Each table, chair, desk, cabinet, coat rack, bench, bed or bathtub has a distinct personality and is designed to be comfortable to live with and a pleasure to use."

Rolland has been making custom furniture for 25 years, in Taos, New Mexico, and now Port Townsend, where he is also a teacher and board member at the Port Townsend School of Woodworking at Fort Worden. In addition, he is a leader of the local gleaning movement — the harvesting of local fruits and vegetables that otherwise might go to waste, for use at local food banks and other food distribution centers.

He came to Port Townsend in 2001, he said, for "forest, ocean, green, rain; the dry desert is a harsh place."

Learn more about Rolland's show at the Bellevue Arts Museum at bellevuearts.org/exhibitions/seth_rolland.html.

Much more of Rolland's work can be seen at his own website, sethrolland.com.

"I believe furniture can fit you perfectly, both in form and function, and still be creative, beautiful and fun to live with."

Seth Rolland furniture maker