AMI Member Profile
I
was taking Industrial Arts education at Oregon State University in 1961 when I
first learned about marquetry and made my first picture.
After
graduating I entered the US Air Force and spent 20 years, mostly in personnel
and administrative positions, finally retiring as a Major.
"Leaning Snag" |
I
had been making a few pictures and decided to see if I could make some supplemental
income by selling them. I sold my first picture within a week after placing it
at a local gallery and I've been at it ever since.
Early
on I did quite a few Craft Shows but now I just sell through galleries and do
commissions whenever they arrive.
I've
never progressed to making a living at marquetry. I think the fact that I do a
lot of volunteer work influences that and having a retirement income makes it
possible.
I
enjoy entering competitive shows and have been fortunate enough to receive an
award now
and then.
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"Flowers in the Round"
|
For
example I got 1st place in the Embellished Woodturnings category, at the
California State Fair this year.
Woodturning
is another of my "weaknesses" and I'm involved with a local woodturning
group.
Our
marquetry shows in the AMI are geared more toward educating the public, and ourselves,
about marquetry rather than being competitive like the British marquetry show.
However, should
any of our members want to enter their marquetry in competitive shows, there are
plenty of opportunities available.
| 
"Yosemite In Fall"
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For
example, The Del Mar Fair Woodworking show accepts national and international
entries and they have
a reputation as one of the best competitive woodworking shows going at this time.
They also have a marquetry/veneer category.
I
see my job as editor for the newsletter as an important one in facilitating the
exchange of information about marquetry. Because marquetry is done in many ways
and within each particular method there are a multitude of possible variations,
I wish more people would share their approach. The fun comes in finding out how
someone else does something and suddenly saying, “I can do that!”
Editor's
Note: If you have something you would like to share with others related to marquetry,
we encourage you to submit an article to Dave for future publication in the AMI
newsletter. Remember, we are all at different levels in marquetry and anything
you feel worthy of sharing will probably be useful to several other members as
well.
To
learn more about Dave and his marquetry or view more of his artwork, click on
the links below.
