From Masterchef to Marquetry.
Chris Malcomson has always been interested in the details.
Born in Arundel, England 1964, Chris studied various artistic mediums from fine art and sculpture, to an extensive career as an a la carte chef spanning 20 years but in the early 1990s he decided on a change of career, specifically into marquetry.
As luck would have it, one phone call and position came up for a marquetry maker and designer straight out of the yellow pages (fate had lent a hand). Sometimes you just know you’d be good at something and he was willing to work for free. In a short space of time he secured a paid position.
As a maker I constantly strive to learn new techniques and am tireless in my pursuit of perfection in miniature.
Armed with his marquetry skills he took on a business partner who was an old school cabinet maker and antique dealer. For the next 6 or 7 years he learned some amazing skills from a master. They specialised in restoration and took on clients such as English Heritage.
In 2006 Chris was challenged to make a 1:12 scale miniature by Dolls House World magazine who happened to be based a few yards from his front door. This indroduction led him into the world of miniatures. The skills he learned in antiques became useful to him as he handled many period pieces and had a good working knowledge of how they were put together.
Chris has been working on something special for the showcase.
William and Mary table collectors cabinet c1690
This piece is a real celebration of the marquetry makers art. Measuring just 38mm across the cabinet is inlaid on all its surfaces using traditional floral marquetry techniques of the 17th century pushed to the extreme.
Each of the hundreds of pieces making up the design have be sawn, sand shaded and etched before sanding and finishing, representing hundreds of hours of painstaking work. The interior is decorated in similar fashion with ebony and boxwood stars cut into myrtle and tulipwood lipped drawers. The cabinet sits on delicate gold bronze lions paw feet. £850.00.
To see more of Chris’s work click HERE
