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Centre for Rare Arts and Forgotten Trades acknowledges the Wadawurrung people as the Traditional custodians of the land on which we operate. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present, and to all of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who live and work on Wadawurrung Country. We acknowledge their unceded sovereignty over Wadawurrung Country, and the ongoing hardship and trauma as a result of colonisation. The history and continuous culture of the Wadawurrung people is an important part of our shared story.

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We’re open during workshop hours to participants only.

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Rare Trades Centre05 11 22 23

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Which workshops are you interested in?

Bowmaker and Woodworker
WORKSHOP STYLE Slow, thoughtful, contemplative. 
ROB SAYS: I like working with wood, it’s very meditative, it’s something you can get very absorbed in. My long bows are created from single pieces of wood which are peeled back with hand tools to reveal the shapes needed to create these medieval weapons. It’s a gradual ancient process, always testing the strength and bend of the bow to get maximum range. 
I also love sharing the story of the long bow and how it shaped history hundreds of years ago. There is something quite mesmerising about sending a projectile sailing off into the distance and especially so when it’s something you have made yourself. 
WE SAYS: Robert Geddes is a self-taught woodworker and bowyer. There is no apprenticeship or guild to learn bowyering from in Australia, so he took his learning into his own hands. Robert is a high school teacher of English, History and Woodwork. When he isn’t teaching, he’s passing on his rare trade. Robert has exhibited his rare trade at the Lost Trades Fair at Kyneton, Bendigo and Toowoomba and has been running workshops in bowyering since 2017.

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Three Legged Stool

The Centre for Rare Arts & Forgotten Trades - 383 – 389 Bradshaw Street, Ballarat VIC 3350

Long Bow Making

Learn to make a traditional long bow with bowyer, Robert Geddes!

RTC Banner Image Vernacular Furniture

Vernacular Furniture Making: Three-Legged Stool

Learn to make a three-legged stool with woodworker Robert Geddes. 

In this full-day workshop, you will spend the day learning the fundamental principles, tools, and techniques of Vernacular Chairmaking. Sometimes called 
""furniture of the people"", vernacular furniture is used in day-to-day life and is often regionally specific. 

You will make a simple three-legged stool in the style of a Sheffield Cutler’s Stool or a rustic milking stool using only a small selection of traditional hand 
tools including rasps, spokeshaves and planes. 

At the end of the day, you will take home your finished piece.

Jimmy Possum Downsized

The Centre for Rare Arts & Forgotten Trades - 383 – 389 Bradshaw Street, Ballarat VIC 3363

Learn to Make a Jimmy Possum Style Chair

In this 4-day workshop participants will learn about the story and the tools, skills and knowledge used in constructing the iconic Australian Jimmy Possum 
style chair.