Russell Karkowski

Machinery blocked up before flood

Russell's Iowa City furniture studio that he shares with furniture maker David Naso was flooded in June 2008 by widespread floods that affected much of the midwest.  Fortunately, he was in town at the time of the flooding and was able to make some last-minute preparations that kept the damage from being much worse than it was.  Even so, the studio suffered considerable loss to property and to productivity.

No stranger to disaster, Russell had lost a previous studio to fire.  He has shared his experiences and considerable insights into both the physical and emotional aspects of disaster recovery as well as the importance of preparedness in this set of short video clips.

The interview from which these clips are drawn took place at the Iowa Artisans Gallery in Iowa City, Iowa in June 2009, one year after the flood.

These videos are also indexed in relevant sections of the Studio Protector Online Guide.  Because each video clip was intended to stand alone, the first 13 seconds of each contains a similar opening title block that can be skipped if you desire by dragging the progress bar forward.