Adam Findlay is a cabinet maker, trained at the London Metropolitan University. He then went on to further master the skills of cabinet making at The Edward Barnsley Workshop in Petersfield, where furniture makers serve a unique apprenticeship.
His success as a cabinet maker, working from his workshop in Battersea, making bespoke pieces of furniture to commission, led to a desire to mentor and teach.
Adam is now a secondary teacher of Design Technology at King Alfred School in Hampstead and Head of Year 7.
When his first child was born, in 2009, Adam began a series of carved wooden fish, made form cherry, beech and zebrano. The inspiration was to make a hanging mobile but the end result led to the fish being displayed around the house...they were too tactile not to be handled and touched by the observer. This was the start of the whittling venture.
Findlays Woodcarving Workshops began in 2017.
They were were born out of a desire to bring generations together, in an informal space, to share the joy of making. It is a family business. His wife, Annabel, does all that is not the making and makes the workshops happen. Their son, Bruno, attends most workshops and is a paid apprentice.
Working with wood, observing the grain and considering the shape you are trying to achieve is hugely relaxing and reaffirms how vital it is to use our hands and keep in touch with what it is to be human in this digital age.