Artist Statement

I find great satisfaction in creating functional works of beauty that help fulfill someone else’s dreams and desires for their environment. The challenge of improving with each new piece is part of the passion that draws me to this art form.  Whether it is developing a new design, cutting tight joinery, laying down a perfect finish, or creating strong relationships with clients, I find it all exciting and very rewarding. 

Biography

Doug McPherson is best known for artistically designed custom woodworking.    While he has constructed pieces in many styles, his preference is to create artistic, elegant, functional furniture that is influenced by nature. 

Doug was previously an artist member at the Flat River Gallery and Framing in Lowell, Michigan.  In October 2018, he was selected as the Artist in Residence at the Forest Hills Fine Arts Center.   Doug’s work has been commissioned and sent all around the country, including Alaska, California, Florida, Georgia, Pennsylvania, and others.  His work was recently featured in the 2018 Wood Whisperer calendar. Frederik Meijer Gardens commissioned him to build benches for the Richard and Helen Devos Japanese Garden.  He was commissioned to build a Greene and Greene style chess board/humidor for NBA legend Paul Pierce. Doug has completed hundreds of pieces over more than twenty years.

Personal Story

Doug’s interest in working with wood began as a young boy in Northern Michigan in his grandfather’s workshop. Those first simple projects with his grandfather awoke in him a passion to create beauty through craftsmanship and design. For more than twenty years, he has pursued this interest, first as a hobby, then as a “side-hustle” business. Recently Doug committed to woodworking and artistic craftsmanship as his full-time profession.   Doug acquires nearly all of his raw material (hardwood) from reclaimed or repurposed sources, including urban wood, job site trees, or reclaimed barn wood. He “rescues” the logs and mills them into usable lumber with help from a friend and his portable sawmill.
Doug is a member of The Wood Whisperer Guild, where he participates in online learning and collaborates with other craftsmen from around the world.

Doug and his wife Doris live in Saranac, Michigan, with his studio workshop next to their home. They are blessed to have three fantastic children!