Coral reef marquetry evokes shell habitat
Matthew Werner’s client asked him to design a pair of cabinets to display a treasured collection of shells left to her by her grandmother. The shells were collected from coral reefs in the tropical Pacific, and the client’s brief was for the marquetry in the back panels to evoke the habitat where the shells originated.
Detail of shell display in marquetry habitat
Ecologically correct renderings
Matthew Werner’s client, a marine biologist, wanted ecologically correct renderings of the shells’ habitat. He told me that she impressed him by correctly identifying the species when he submitted his initial sketches; responding to one with “nice drawing, but that’s a Garibaldi and they live in more temperate waters.”
Marquetry detail
“I wanted to avoid having the objects on the shelves conceal much of the marquetry. Shelves were placed at one foot intervals, so I arranged the creatures in the back panel so they would mostly be in the upper half of each space between shelves. Eventually I had the right collection of species arranged in a design that satisfied us both, and I was able to start the marquetry.” – Matthew Werner
Marquetry detail
Collaboration pleases both artist and client
Matthew Werner and his client are very pleased with the way the shell collection looks after being installed in the cabinets. She likes how the real shells and the marquetry background interact; he likes the way his client arranged the shells in ways that match up with the background.
Complete "Coral Reef Cabinets" installation
Cabinet on the right
Here’s a video about Matthew Werner’s marquetry enhanced furniture:
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