IPM awards Best in Show prize at Rycotewood Summer Show

Alastair Minus, a student at Rycotewood Furniture Centre, has been awarded the Furniture Makers’ ‘Best in Show’ prize at the 2022 Rycotewood Summer Show for his superbly crafted dressing table/desk.

The show, which opened for a private view on Monday 13 June and then to the public from 14-18 June, showcases the fantastic work of the college students studying furniture design, furniture making and furniture apprenticeship courses.

Immediate Past Master David Woodward and Past Master Tony Smart MBE were invited to the private evening to help judge the Best in Show prize.

After careful deliberation, the judges chose Alastair’s handmade dressing table/desk, which is made from American black walnut and rippled sycamore. The dressing table features two dovetailed drawers and a bevelled oval mirror which floats inside a frame. The angle of the mirror can be adjusted and the mirror can also be turned around while the piece is used as a writing desk. 

David presented Alastair with a certificate and a cash prize of £100 during a ceremony at the private evening.

Having been working as a self-employed furniture maker for a few years prior, Alastair enrolled at Rycotewood Furniture Centre in 2019 and has been studying furniture making there for three years. Having graduated in June, he now intends on working under the name Minus Fine Furniture.

David Woodward, Immediate Past Master, said: “It’s always an honour and a privilege to be invited to events like the Rycotewood Summer Show. The event is a sensational showcase of exemplary talent, so it was very heartening to see a packed venue, with the visitor number back to pre-pandemic levels. We had considerable difficulty in selecting a winner as all the designs were of such a high quality, but the dressing table/desk produced by Alastair pipped the post.”

Commenting on receiving the award, Alastair said: “It is an honour to receive the Best in Show award from The Furniture Makers’ Company and I didn’t expect it at all. The show was full of amazing pieces and all the students and staff should be really proud. This award comes as a perfect end to an amazing three years at Rycotewood and I couldn’t be more grateful for all the support from the Rycotewood staff and I am hugely grateful to The Furniture Makers’ Company for presenting me with this award.”

The show is at the City of Oxford campus and is open to the public until Saturday 18 June.

For more information about Alastair Minus, go to: https://www.minusfinefurniture.com/