Portrait of an artist as an older man

Rico says his friend George Morris is finally getting his due, in this article by Dawn Fallik in the Philadelphia Inquirer:

This firefighter turns one person’s fallen tree into another’s cherry salad bowl, sometimes with surprising results. 

When George Morris sits down with a block of wood, he might have a plan in mind. But by the time he steps away from the lathe, it doesn't always turn out that way. Different types of wood turn differently. Sometimes there's a knot or a hollow or a curve that calls out to be a bowl or an ornament. "My wife always asks me what I'm making," he says. "I tell her the wood has to speak to me, and that's the truth."
Morris, 59, grew up in Yeadon and originally went to college for law enforcement. College wasn't a good fit, so he started working for a kitchen company, helping install and manufacture cabinets. His first assignment involved learning how to use a broom correctly, a skill he's passed on to his seven grandchildren.
He eventually started his own construction company. But after 25 years, he wanted something different. In high school, Morris had worked as a volunteer firefighter for the Yeadon fire department. In 1993, he was hired full-time. "Every day is different," he says. "You see all the good in people and all the bad things that happen to people."
Still, after a quarter of a century working with your hands, it's hard to put down the craft. With his wife's blessing, he turned their basement into a wood shop. But, Morris said, the only thing construction and woodworking have in common is the splinters. So he had to start at the beginning. First, four years ago, he made a tool handle, basically a spindle. Then, with the help of the DelVal Woodturners club, he started making bowls, boxes, and ornaments. Soon he ran out of space in the house to put them, so he created a website and started selling at local shows.
Most of the wood comes from the chopped-down trees of local neighbors who donate it to the club.
"What's the big deal about making a bowl?" Morris said. "You take a big piece of wood spinning at 500 r.p.m. and shove a sharp instrument toward it. Sometimes it can get exciting; bowls can get embedded in walls and ceilings when it comes off real fast and ends up flying across the room."
And then there are the times when it all comes together. Out comes the cherry bowl with the natural ragged edge, or the walnut platter with carved leaves, or the box with shiny curves, or the Christmas ornament made of cocobola (a Central American hardwood) and ash. The wood tells stories. Sometimes Morris finds lead bullets. Other times cracks appear, which can ruin a whole project.
He has exhibited at several local shows, including the Media Arts Show and at the Perkins Center in Collingswood. Most of his works sell for $40 to $300, but Morris just laughed when asked if he planned to turn his turning into a full-time gig. "If I'm lucky, I may make golf money from when I retire," he said. "But the fellows who are doing it full-time, they've been working at it for 20 years."

Rico says he and the ladyfriend own several Morris pieces; they're all wonderful. Go to his website and spend money.