Master Craftsman

Harnessing the power of intense heat and focused fire, Southampton artist Isabella Rupp, this month’s Master Craftsman, paints with glass.

One South Fork carpenter specializes in replacing decks, designing, selecting materials, doing renderings and plans, getting permits and building them out with his crew.

Carpentry is everywhere in homes, from bookshelves to moldings, fireplaces to tables and chairs. We live in a wood world where trees are routinely transformed into furnishings around us. But if carving and cutting wood are commonly practiced crafts, Roger Levin has, if not discovered, recently begun a different way of working with wood.

While most people use light to see other objects, Brooklyn-based Shakúff specializes in designing artistic lighting fixtures that, themselves, are worth looking at.

Shane Weeks makes candles designed to capture a little bit of the scent, and maybe even the spirit, of the Shinnecock Nation. They get their names from the land and come with cards explaining the role the plants they contain play in Shinnecock culture.

Chris Hayes is the proud owner and caretaker of about 150 bonsai plants at his home, mostly outdoors with a few tropical trees indoors. He is a practitioner of the craft of bonsai — part art, part nature and pleasure.

Southampton sculptor James Ding strives to create work that expresses the dynamic and transformative power of love.

Long Island luthier Cris Mirabella creates handmade artisan guitars of breathtaking beauty and sound quality — and he learns everything he needs to know when he strums them for the first time.

When it comes to waterfront property, few can match the expertise or experience of Darian Odabasi. But it’s a different type of waterfront.

Inside each Behind The Hedges magazine, our Master Craftsman column highlights people who help make our house a home.