New woodworking school is for people who ‘want to make things with their own two hands’

Wichita native David Fowler wants to share his craftsmanship skills and love of woodworking with other Wichitans who are looking to create.

His new Wichita Woodworking Academy will be for hobbyists, not people looking for new careers.

“It’s not going to be a trade school,” Fowler said.

“I’m at a point in my life where I want to give back, and I want to share what I’ve learned over the last 30 years and help people grow in their desires to make things with their own two hands.”

Fowler said he’s made furniture his whole life.

He formally trained at New York State, where he received an associate degree in furniture design and construction.

Fowler also worked for the late, internationally known sculptor and furniture maker Wendell Castle for about a decade before going out on his own.

“Working with Wendell is where I learned and worked to a very high level of craftsmanship,” Fowler said. “Wendell even wrote a letter stating that my skill level at making hand-cut dovetails was the best that he had ever seen.”

He said working around a master taught him much.

“He taught me so much about design, proportions and space.”

In 1999, Fowler returned to Wichita and received a business degree at Wichita State University and worked for a cabinet shop while completing his degree. He said he’s been thinking about the school for many years.

The school is opening in about four weeks at his Fowler Woodworking at Second and Cleveland.

The businesses are separate but will be in the same building.

Fowler said he originally planned a gallery in the front of his business, but he’s turning that space into an area with woodworking benches for the school.

“The focus of the school will be pretty broad,” he said.

There will be beginner, intermediate and advanced classes and some for women only.

Classes will be in the evenings and on weekends.

“It kind of depends on what the market is going to demand . . . out of the school,” Fowler said.

He said he’ll offer two types of classes.

One is focused on making something. Students will leave with furniture or household accessories. Those classes will focus more on what the participants are making than about learning woodworking skills.

“The other class is focused totally on woodworking,” Fowler said.

Those classes are about techniques, craftsmanship and using hand and power tools.

There will be a range of prices for classes.

A one-day class may be $125 to $250. A week-long class could be $700 to $950.

“It does depend on what materials will be needed for that class,” Fowler said.

The school will borrow from his business’ machine room initially. Eventually, Fowler said, he plans for the school to be his main focus.

The school’s website is still under construction, but anyone interested in classes can check out the classes tab at fowlerwoodworking.com in the meantime.

Fowler has taught in various capacities previously in New York and Wichita, including as the woodshop senior mentor at GoCreate at WSU. He said he teaches a variety of classes there, a number of which focus on safety.

Retired WSU professor John Belt, a friend of Fowler’s, told him he’s a natural teacher and encouraged him to pursue that.

Now, Fowler said he wants to invite people to slow down in life and see what they can create.

He said his ideal students will be people who “just want to make things with their own two hands.”