Andrew Denman

Andrew Denman is one of Australia's few remaining traditional wooden boatbuilders.

Andrew re-trained as a wooden boat builder in 2004 following an early mid-life change. After completing his training, he started his business building, restoring and repairing timber vessels. Over the past 18 years, Andrew and his team have built or restored over 80 watercraft spanning the full range of skills used in the wooden boatbuilding sector. He has trained several apprentices and mentored younger craftspeople entering the industry.

Andrew is passionate about ensuring that the skills, practices and traditions associated with wooden boat building are safeguarded and transmitted to future generations. He firmly believes the enduring techniques of traditional boatbuilding, which are particular to an area/country, are inextricably linked to the timber species used and that access to such timbers is essential to the craft's survival.

A strong advocate for sustainability, Andrew has worked extensively in the specialty timber policy arena to ensure that Tasmania's endemic boatbuilding timbers continue to be available now and for the boatbuilders of the future.