Radeschi combines his love of trees, his understanding of how they grow and how they can be cut down with his accumulated knowledge, skill, patience and artistic vision in crafting unique wooden bowls, cutting boards and award-winning turnings.

The turnings have received awards at juried shows and been purchased for private collections and public museums up and down the East Coast. A vocational education teacher in New Jersey, the Brooklyn-born and raised Vietnam veteran and his wife of nearly 53 years, Loretta, moved to Pennsylvania 22 years ago.

At age 78, Radeschi’s turnings number more than 200 and range in height from 24 to 36 inches and feature intricate patterns and various woods in a variety of colors and shades. A 6-inch turning decorated the White House Christmas tree in 1991 and others are in prominent collections throughout the country, including a collection by the late Nathan Ancell, co-founder of Ethan Allen Inc. It was for Ancell’s art gallery that Radeschi created one of his largest turnings, a 4-foot tall piece he designed at Ancell’s request to “knock your socks off,” for his art gallery, Radeschi recalled. His pieces were also used in advertising for the gallery.

“That was something. I remember laying on the lathe and I had to take two steps to get to the switch to turn it off,” he said.

Mirror photo by Patt Keith / Loretta and her husband George Radeschi look at one of his turnings in their Bedford Township home.

“It was huge,” Loretta said.

The turnings resemble oversized vases with repetitive patterns reminiscent of Native American, Greek and Egyptian art. A visual feast for the eyes, the pieces delight the fingers as the wood warms to the touch as patterns are traced on the highly polished, satin-like surface. Fluted necks and carved embellishments highlight some pieces.

While beautiful, his large bowls and cutting boards are made to be used and are food safe. He often gives them to friends as gifts, and they are often purchased as wedding gifts. Cutting boards of white oak and Brazilian cherry sell for $155 and his bowls of zebra wood and Brazilian cherry sell between $250 and $350. The fine art turnings are priced between $1,400 and $1,800. Each turning represents up to eight weeks of work.

“If you were to put a mirror on the inside, you would see exactly the same thing. It’s not an inlay — it’s a segmentation,” Radeschi said. “Woodworking has been a hobby of mine throughout my entire adult life. I started entering craft shows about 40 years ago.”

He constantly looks for patterns in other art such as pottery and even everyday items such as blankets and people’s sweaters.

“You have to be careful with that,” he said, laughing about following a sweater wearer around.

Turning No. 167 (he numbers each work rather than naming them) is exhibited in the Southwestern Pennsylvania Council for the Arts 28th Annual Regional Juried Art Exhibition at The Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art at Ligonier Valley.

Kristin Miller, site director and education coordinator at Ligonier Valley, said, “George is an outstanding artist, a true master craftsman. George uses different types of wood creating a symphony of design in each and every piece. You can feel the emotion and passion exuding from his work. George has a true gift as he is able to take something raw, harsh and through his highly skilled craftsmanship, an amazing transformation takes place. That raw timber becomes a warm intricate specimen of beauty.”

Radeschi works with Penn State forestry experts in managing his land from which he sources oak, maple, ash, hickory and walnut. He has his own sawmill and controls how the lumber is cut to bring out different features and grain patterns. He also special-orders exotic woods such as rosewood, goncalo alves and bubinga from Brazil and zebra wood from Africa using only ethical sources.

Radechi credits Loretta’s marketing efforts with his success. Loretta uses her background as a writer and in marketing to promote George’s art. She handles entries into shows, photography, publicity and the related logistics.

In 1989, he received first place at the New Rochelle (N.Y.) Art Association exhibit.

“It was made of rosewood,” Loretta recalled. “The judge said it was the first time in the organization’s 75-year history that first place was given to something other than an oil painting.”

The pieces are made in the large workshop behind their home.

“You really have to have an understanding of how the tree grows and how you cut the wood from the tree and put it to practical use and to an application step and understand what the wood movements are,” he said. “All the adhesives, the clamping methods, the angles and you have to have a knowledge just to put 100 pieces of wood together and come out completely round. There are a lot of technical aspects which are mostly self-taught. I’m a lifetime student of woodwork.”

He spent his working career teaching others automotive and diesel mechanics at a vocational school. One former student, William Walker, 43, who lives in El Paso, Texas, reconnected with Radeschi about a year ago after searching for him via the internet because he wanted to thank him for the difference he made in his life. Walker hadn’t known about Radeschi’s woodworking passion.

“The level and intricacy and detail in his work is just incredible,” Walker said. “He’s just amazing and that he’s self-taught is incredible. He built his own house and all his furniture, and it looks like something out of a high-end showroom. And his workshop is set up perfectly.”

But Walker’s admiration goes far beyond Radeschi’s fine art skills.

“He’s just amazing,” Walker said. “I didn’t realize it when I was a kid how much he cared and how he set me up for success in life.”

When Walker’s shop teacher became ill, his class was absorbed into Radeschi’s class.

“We were so far behind compared to his classes. His classes were doing everything and anything. He got us caught up to speed in about two months,” he said.

When Walker graduated in 1999, he left with two certifications in the industry, which allowed him to earn $2 more an hour in his first job. But he learned so much more besides auto mechanics as Radeschi also taught the students how to take responsibility for their actions, have a good work ethic, how to write a resume and how to get and keep a job.

Radeschi delights in telling stories in his still-thick Brooklynese accent, including his first meeting with the late Ethan Allen Inc. founder, Ancell, at a museum exhibit.

“It was a very quiet day; in fact it was a bit on the boring side. I was sitting there when here comes this elderly fellow,” Radeschi said of Ancell. “He walked around with an instamatic camera hanging around his neck. He was walking with a cane and had a limp. I guess I had nodded off … so he rattled the chair with his cane. He says, ‘what do you want for everything?’ I wasn’t prepared for the question. So he said he’d come back.”

While skeptical the man would return, Radeschi priced his pieces and when Ancel returned, they both wrote down their asking price and opted to flip a coin. Radeschi won.

“I don’t know if we agreed to his price or mine, but we were only $500 apart. So he hands me his card and says, ‘just take it to any one of my stores and they’ll ship them to me.’ I looked at the card and said, ‘you should have shown me the card before I wrote down the price.'”

The exchange was the beginning of a friendship that included the Radeschis being invited to Ancell’s Connecticut home and facilities and many phone conversations.

When Radeschi was being featured on a TV program, Ancell participated by talking about his work.

Ancell is quoted on Radeschi’s website where his wood turnings, bowls and cutting boards are for sale, describing Radeschi as “one of the most creative and imaginative artists in wood that I have ever found. The architectural structure, color arrangements, and the way George puts the piece together indicate his great talent for creating fine art.”

For more information about Radeschi’s work, visit www.georgeradeschi.com.