Move-In Ready, Mid-century Modern Birdhouses For The Hippest Flock

Vermont Public | By Mary Williams Engisch

Published September 7, 2017 at 3:59 PM EDT

Vermont woodworker Steve Hadeka creates unique birdhouses in his workshop, Pleasant Ranch. Using local hard and soft woods and acrylic, his creations bring a modern aeshetic to a traditional form.

If TV show "Mad Men's" character Don Draper needed a birdhouse to tack to a tree in his backyard in the suburbs, the ones that Vermont woodworker Steve Hadeka creates would totally fit the bill.

Hadeka makes wooden and Plexiglas birdhouses that echo the clean lines and aesthetic of midcentury modern furniture of the 1950s and 60s. He also has created a line of kitchen and bar ware from his Burlington home and workshop, dubbed Pleasant Ranch.

Recently, Hadeka - who is also a sought-after drummer with bands fronted by Seth Yacavone and Josh Panda - spoke with VPR about two new projects which feature his birdhouses and other creations in public exhibits.

Through the month of September, Hadeka has 15 birdhouses on display in an exhibit, "Riffing On The Modern Birdhouse 4" at the Burlington restaurant, Penny Cluse.

Hadeka was also asked to create a piece to include in an exhibit titled, "Sweet Tooth - The Art of Desserts," at the Murphy Gallery in the Pizzagalli Center for Art and Education at Shelburne Museum in Shelburne. That exhibit opens on Sept. 23 and runs through February of next year.

Speaking about the one-of-a-kind art piece he created for the museum, Hadeka said, "They take an old dessert case and they've filled it with art pieces that are designed to resemble desserts," Hadeka said.

I have sort of, not a plain style but a very clean-line kind of style so this was very out-of-the-box for me and it was super fun. - Vermont woodworker Steve Hadeka talking about creating the art piece for a Shelburne Museum exhibit.

The quintessential Vermont maple creemee created from maple wood is Steve Hadeka's contribution to a Shelburne Museum exhibit of art pieces extolling sweet desserts.

"I chose to make a maple creemee out of maple wood, actually, Shelburne Farms maple was used in that. I turned it on the lathe so you can kind of see the waves of ice cream there and the little dollop on the top. I'm pretty proud of that one. It's really awesome to be part of any museum exhibit especially one as cool as Shelburne," he said.

See Hadeka's birdhouses at Penny Cluse through Sept. 30. His art piece at Shelburne Museum is part of the "Sweet Tooth - The Art of Desserts" exhibit, which opens Sept. 23.