Adaptive re-use / Automata
The pieces on this page are, by and large, experiments in applying marquetry to existing objects, often antiques, that are retrofitted with new mechanisms or electronics to make them more usable.
Quotas
Roger Wagner (of HyperCard fame) asked me to do a project using his MakerPort Artist Animatronic set. This piece voices a famous quote when one of the buttons is pressed, and when the aperture opens, the person who said the quote is revealed on an LCD screen. Check out the movie: https://youtu.be/60DqQNPNY_8 which also shows how it was made.
10" x 12 x 4" --- Eucalyptus, walnut, lati, birch, and maple. 2025
1900s Carousel
This is another kinetic piece in the form of an old-time carousel. As you turn the crank, the stage rotates and the horses move up and down. They are based on Eduard Muybridge's famous 1878 horse photos, where he proved to railroad baron Leland Stanford that a horse gallops with all four feet in the air and ushered in the motion pictures.
12" by 14" by 9" —Lati, bubinga, white ash burl, maple burl, and oak. 2025
Geneva Zoetrope
The zoetrope was a 19th century way to show moving images before movies. This version uses a Geneva drive mechanism, used in film projectors to provide the intermittent motion animation needs. Works surprisingly well, considering it's made out of wood. The animation is from Eduard Muybridge's1878 photo series, proving that all four legs of a horse were in the air together.
10" by 13" by 3" — Sapele, lark, paldoa and birch. 2024
Cuckoo Clock
I got a cuckoo clock mechanism from Amazon, and placed it in a wooden frame. The front marquetry is based on a late 19th-century William Morris design. It cuckoo's every hour and a little wooden bird comes out from the doors at the top, while the tail tags back and forth.
9” by 12” by 4" deep--- Maple, sapele, mahogany, wenge, cherry, walnut, birch, lacewood , and paulownia in a maple and oak frame. 2024
1953 RCA Victrola
A 1953 RCA Victrola, restored with digital turntable. Inlay is of piano keyboard and piano player. Donated to Unison Preservation Society annual auction.
15” by 19” by 11" tall --- Maple, wenge, cherry, walnut, birch, anegre, and bloodwood on mahogany base. 2023
Banjo Speakers
Bluetooth speakers in Butterworth ported enclosures. They sound pretty good for their size. Design is inspired by 1950s Hungarian painter Bela de Kristo.
5.5" by 5.5” by 7" — walnut, bamboo, ash, bubinga, sapele, and wenge. 2024
Matisse leaf table
Towards the end of his life, French painter Henri Matisse created a series of abstract flowers cut from large sheets of colored paper. I found this table at an antique store in Purcellville.
24” by 28” --- Walnut and mahogany on table. 2023
Muybridge table
In 1878 Leland Stanford made a bet that all four legs of a horse were airborne while galloping. He hired Edward Muybridge to prove it by shooting a sequence using 12 cameras.
20” by 20” --- Padauk, lacewood, and walnut on mangowood table. 2022
Acanthus Sink
Basin cut from white oak using CNC, with William Morris design on front panel.
18” by 18” x 16" — Sapele, birch, maple, padauk, wenge, mahogany, walnut, makope, and anegre. 2024