One of them was a accomplished architect. Another practiced law for several years, and the third - who earned his bachelor's degree in finance and a master's in business - seemed headed for a career on Wall Street. Yet eventually, all three generations of Moulthrop men ended up turning wood on a lathe for a living.

Together the Moulthrops - Ed, his son Philip and Philip's son Matt - make up a wood-turning dynasty that has forged and carried on a shared vision and process for celebrating the inherent beauty of wood in a variety of distinctive vessels and forms. While each has his own style and has made his own contributions to the field, it is also the consistencies in their work that have helped to elevate turned-wood forms to a well-respected genre of art.

All of that and more about the Moulthrops can be discovered in an exhibit of their work currently on display in the upstairs galleries at the Racine Art Museum, 441 Main St. Moulthrop Generations: Turned Wood Bowls by Ed, Philip and Matt Moulthrop is the first major museum exhibition to focus on the three generations of these Georgia-based artists and evaluate their aesthetic, according to the RAM. And Racine is one of only two places the show will be seen - the other being the Arizona State University Art Museum, in Tempe, Ariz., which organized the exhibition.

While the RAM does have three Moulthrop pieces in its permanent collection, Midwesterners haven't had much opportunity prior to this to see their work, as most of their exhibitions have been in the Southeast and the West, said Bruce Pepich, executive director and curator of collects at the RAM.

"To see this much of it in one place is rather phenomenal," Pepich said.

And it isn't just the scope of the exhibit, which includes more than 70 pieces, that is impressive. From the large, almost sculptural vessels (some are several feet across) of Ed Moulthrop, who died in 2003, to Philip's fascinating mosaic-formed bowls, and the elegant, flowing vases and chalices of Matt, each piece has a personality of its own, inspired by the natural patterns and colors found in the wood.

"You could lose yourself in some of these pieces," Pepich said. "They have a great deal of atmosphere and spirituality in them."

Inside out

The appreciation for the artistic aspects of wood that is native to their area is something that has been passed down from generation to generation in the Moulthrop family.

"Like my father, we use a variety of southeastern woods, and we try to show how the pattern grows in each of those trees," said Philip Moulthrop in a recent phone conversation from his Georgia home. "We are continuing the tradition of showing what is actually inside each of these trees."

Different shaped vessels are chosen for different woods, according to how each shape will accentuate the natural patterns found in each wood, he explained.

"We are always trying to determine which shape will best show off the colors and patterns in each tree," Moulthrop said. "And the appearance we get varies not only by the type of tree, but the age of the tree. A maple, for example, is totally different at three years old than it is at six months old."

In addition to various maples, the Moulthrops' work features woods such as Spanish oak, sycamore, tulip poplar, black walnut and cherry. The wood turners are also conservationists in that they never cut trees themselves (they use logs cut by local woodsmen) and they utilize "trash trees" - ones that are usually destined for the landfill or chipboard because of spalting, the patterns created by fungal decay in wood.

One of the Moulthrops' favorite trash woods is ashleaf maple (also known as box elder), in which the fungus is marked by red areas of color. Looking at their pieces made with this lovely golden wood streaked with red, one might never know that its beauty was caused by a fungus. And if you are worried that the fungus will continue to grow within these pieces of art, don't. The surface treatment formula that Ed developed years ago - soaking unfinished works in vats of polyethylene glycol - not only prevents the wood from cracking as it dries, but keeps the fungus from growing.

Innovation and

creativity

Such innovative thinking has also carried through the generations. Philip, for instance, developed the mosaic technique for bowls, in which hundreds of branch sections are glued to a bowl and the spaces between them filled with a mixture of epoxy and sawdust, before returning the vessel to the lathe for reshaping. The result is a striking polka dot pattern with an almost three-dimensional look to it.

"I am always thinking of new ways to present turned objects," Philip said. "Right now, I'm working on a series of platters that I just started doing this year."

Matt, meanwhile, has introduced nearly a dozen new woods to the Moulthrop repertoire (including green-tinged holly and sabal palm) and has experimented with different wood polishes.

While knowing how these pieces are made adds to the enjoyment of the exhibit, it doesn't take a wealth of art knowledge to be able to appreciate the Moulthrop's work, Pepich said.

"You can walk in the door and know very little or nothing about art and be just as appreciative of these pieces, not only for their aesthetic value, but the whole technical aspect of them as well."

While wood turning is an art form, it can also be noisy, strenuous and even dangerous work, he explained. Powerful tools are used to form the shapes and artists wear ear and eye protection while they work to protect themselves from the machinery's loud noise and the debris flying around the shop. In the Moulthrops' case, they are also often dealing with logs that weigh between 1,000 and 1,500 pounds, Pepich said.

Viewing the exquisitely polished forms in the RAM's galleries, it may be difficult to imagine that they were created from a rough block of wood. But, the proof can be seen in several books about the artists' work which are also on display in the exhibit. Visitors will also have a chance to hear about the pieces and how they are made directly from one of the artists when Philip Moulthrop comes to town on Aug. 1 to give a behind-the-scenes tour of the show (see information box for details).

If You Go

WHAT: Moulthrop Generations: Turned Wood Bowls by Ed, Philip and Matt Moulthrop

WHERE: Racine Art Museum, 441 Main St.

WHEN: Now through Sept. 14. Museum hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. RAM is closed on Mondays, federal holidays and Easter.

COST: Museum admission is $5 for adults; $3 for students and seniors; and free for children under age 12. Admission will be free on Aug. 1 (see below).

SPECIAL EVENT: Philip Moulthrop will be in Racine on Aug. 1 to do a behind-the-scenes tour of the exhibit and a book signing. The tour, which is free, will begin at 6:30 p.m. and the book signing will be at 7:30 p.m. Space for the tour is limited and guests are encouraged to arrive early. Exhibition catalogues, as well as other books about the Moulthrops' work, are available in the RAM's store and can be pre-ordered. Philip Moulthrop's tour will take place during Downtown's First Friday event. RAM will extend its hours until 9 p.m. that evening with free admission and will also host a free, family hands-on art project from 4 to 8 p.m.

INFO: Call (262) 638-8300 or go to http://www.ramart.org

Also at the RAM and the Wustum

Along with the Moulthrop exhibition, the Racine Art Museum is currently showing:

n "Earl Pardon: Palette Maestro," through Aug. 10.

n "New, Novel and Never Shown Before 2008: Recent Gifts to the Collection (Part I)," through Aug. 10.

n "Diane Simpson: Window Dressing," through Sunday in the museum's Fifth Street windows.

The RAM's partner museum, the Charles A. Wustum Museum of Fine Arts, will open a new exhibition on Saturday called "Racine and Vicinity Show: An All Media Competition." This show, which will run through Nov. 15, showcases works in a wide range of media by artists from throughout Racine, Kenosha and Walworth counties. Artists of southeastern Wisconsin were invited to submit up to three works and RAM members were welcome to submit pieces regardless of where they live. A little more than a third of the 281 diverse pieces submitted (by 112 artists) were chosen for the show. Laurel Turner, curator for Milwaukee's Charles Allis and Villa Terrace museums, juried the exhibition.

An opening reception for the "Racine and Vicinity Show" will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday at Wustum, 2519 Northwestern Ave. For more information, call Wustum at (262) 636-9177.