shading with sand

Tonight is the private view of the 'Celebration of Craftsmanship and Design Exibition' in Cheltinham. I've invited a few guests to come along. The exibition always has a special atsmophere, although everybody is there to sell it doesn't have the commercial hard edge that some shows can have. The setting of the famous lady's collage along with a tradition that sees the halls decked out in arrangements of exotic flowers which immerse you in rich sence as you move around the exhibits, is a beautiful inviroment to show your latest work to clients.

The second piece that I will be showing is a tall jewlery box. Commissioned by a magazine, this piece attempts to revisit the strong influence newly opened trading routes had on western design, most notably on both the Art Nouveau and Art Deco styles.

The main feature of the piece is a panel of marquetry that gives the impression of gazing into a Koi fish pond. I love to work in Marquetry. Designing the image, selecting the best shades and textures of veneer to bring your patten to life is so rewarding. It is a discipline that requires total concentration, control and the need to slow mind and body down. I could spend hours describing the diffrent knives, most home made, that I have collected over the years. The certain set of the cutting angle, or flex in the blade producing just the right cut for a tight curve, or a veneer with a stubborn grain.

The one technique that will allways find its way into my Marquetry work is that of shading with hot sand. Examples of this can be found from the dawn of Marquertry use. The simple prosses of dipping the edge of a section of veneer in a pattern into hot fine sand to scorch and in doing so add depth and interest to a picture amazes me. It's yet another age old woodworking technique that aththough primitive in its simplicity has the ability to be art.