Formerly the Ontario Crafts Council, Craft Ontario is a not-for-profit service organization that works to have craft recognized as a valuable part of life. We promote and celebrate professional craft through providing member opportunities, and advocate for craft practice by educating and empowering diverse audiences.
Leigh Dotey’ s practice is rooted in their research into Western society’s long-standing need to create hierarchies and binaries within material worlds and the ways in which these constructs implicate bodies in space. Dotey grew up exploring and adventuring along the Scarborough Bluffs in Toronto, physically engaged with the forest from an early age. They then went on to work as a tree planter moving back and forth across Canada for many years. Both of these formative experiences have shaped the way that they see and understand the land, forestry, the politics of taken land and bodies in relationship to these spaces. Dotey’s connection to materials is physical and experimental at the same time as being rooted in practicality and research.
Allowing “space” for materials, not forcing them to undergo extensive manipulation but rather letting the quality of the wood speak for itself, Dotey designs work that focuses on human interaction. As a gender nonconforming wood worker they are committed to social justice in all areas of their life and this comes through in their often interactive and transformative work.
Wall Cabinet (closed)
Solid Ash (steam bent, bent lamination), Ash Veneer on Baltic Ply, Aluminum, Brass, Polyethylene, 2016
76 x 30 x 12
Wall Cabinet (open)
Solid Ash (steam bent, bent lamination), Ash Veneer on Baltic Ply, Aluminum, Brass, Polyethylene, 2016
76 x 30 x 12
Wall Cabinet (angle detail)
Solid Ash (steam bent, bent lamination), Ash Veneer on Baltic Birch Ply, Aluminum, Brass, Polyethylene, 2016
76 x 30 x 12
Small Serving Boards
Hard Maple (hand gouged), 2015
18 x 12
Large Serving Boards
Hard Maple (hand gouged), 2015
44 x 12
Large Serving Boards (detail)
Hard Maple (hand gouged), 2015
44 x 12
Game Ball
Solid Ash (hot pipe bent), 2015
50 x 25
Ecology Box
Solid Walnut, 2016
91 x 45 x 3.5
Grete Coffee Table
Solid White Oak, Danish Cord (woven), 2016
101.5 x 51 x 41
Grete Coffee Table (detail)
Solid White Oak, Danish Cord (woven), 2016
101.5 x 51 x 41
Wall Cabinet (closed)
Solid Ash (bent lamination, steam bending), Ash Veneer, Baltic Ply, Aluminum, Brass, 76 x 30 x 12, 2016
Wall Cabinet (open)
Solid Ash (bent lamination, steam bending), Ash Veneer, Baltic Ply, Aluminum, Brass, 76 x 30 x 12, 2016
Olsen Bench
White Oak (ebonized), Brass, 152 x 38 x 39, 2017
Olsen Bench (detail)
White Oak (ebonized), Brass, 152 x 38 x 39, 2017
Bootblack Stool
White Oak (ebonized), Cane (hand dyed), 40 x 43, 2018
Bootblack Stool (detail)
White Oak (ebonized), Cane (hand dyed), 40 x 43, 2018
Footy
White Oak (bent lamination, steam bending), 101 x 35 x 50, 2017
Footy (upright)
White Oak (bent lamination, steam bending), 101 x 35 x 50, 2017
SAIB Community Living Room Benches
White Oak, Brass, 172 x 35 x 44, 2018
SAIB Community Living Room Benches (detail brass handle)
White Oak, Brass, 172 x 35 x 44, 2018
Formerly the Ontario Crafts Council, Craft Ontario is a not-for-profit service organization that works to have craft recognized as a valuable part of life. We promote and celebrate professional craft through providing member opportunities, and advocate for craft practice by educating and empowering diverse audiences.