Mark's blog

#10  11/1/2011

Big news: we are soon to announce a new product. I call it The Flat One, and I am going to leave you guessing as to what it is. I am just finishing the prototype this week, and next week we are going to produce a promotional video. Will share it all as soon as it is ready. The Flat One... Hmm... what could it be?

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#10  3/8/2011  New work

Among other projects, we are currently working on this architectural piece for a client in Rolling Hills California.  It consists of a bar that turns into an entertainment center, and in the opposite corner, a library that turns into a fireplace (not shown).  With Three seating areas, one around the TV, one around the fire, and one at the bar, this room will be party central.  When the owner first ask me to look at the house that they were remodeling, it was to talk about a dining table, but somehow we ended up focusing on this room.  I did this concept sketch, and it has turned into a great collaboration with the owner, the interior designer, and the general contractor.  I'll share more when we are done.  Below is Ben building the curved torsion box that became the bar front. 

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#9  1/8/11   The Wine Table

This fun piece Is based on the pinwheel motif (a term first applied to architecture by Frank Lloyd Wright), and is the result of a design collaboration between myself and architect Jeff Lamb.  it started out as a coffee table...

But we ended up calling it the wine table because the black cube unfolds to reveal your favorite vino and just the right amount of stemware for a romantic gathering.

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#8  9/29/10

Here is our new space under construction.  We haven't moved, but we now have possession of the 500' of storefront adjacent to the 250' that was our office.  The plan is to put the office in the back corner and turn the rest of it into showroom space.  William Roy, whom many of you know from his kitchen design studio in the Pearl District will also be moving into the space with us.

We are expecting to open the new showroom in early 2011, after the streetcar construction has passed our block.

This is Becky Morton, our new neighbor in the building who recently opened her new boutique bicycle accessory store, Bikeasaurus.

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#7  8/27/10

  The three pictures below show the results of our work in the Oregon State Capitol Governors office
  (see mark's blog #2). 

The Governors office circa 1930s

 

The Governor's office 2008 after the fire

The Governor's office 2010 after restoration

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#6  5/28/10

The Queen En Table

For me this piece breaks new ground.  It’s not purely furniture, but it’s not quite sculpture.  It’s not an antique reproduction, but you might think so if you don’t look closely enough.  It is intended to be sexy, humorous, and thoroughly modern in its celebration of dance, but the form is rooted in furniture tradition and the finish is copied from an original Chippendale breakfront in the Winterthur Museum.  I love it when the casual observer perceives it as a traditional piece, and then suddenly discovers its real form.

 

The finish has 15 layers (including 7 different colored layers of stain alternating with 8 clear lacquer coats to create the deep prism-like presentation of wood grain) and 6 polishing operations.  The 24 karat gold on the table top is applied in the traditional water guild technique with rabbit skin glue over gesso and burnished with agate, while the pointe shoes are oil gilded and glazed with Japan colors in the deep folds.

 

Materials:              Honduras Mahogany

                          Lacquer and stain 

                             24K gold leaf

                          Japan color glaze

 

Dimensions:             42” wide x 32” high x 16” deep

 

Awards

The piece has won acceptance into the prestigious American Juried Art Salon’s 2010 Spring/Summer show (an international arts competition www.artjury.com), and a Blue Ribbon Award from the Lake Oswego Festival of the Arts.

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#5  6/24/10

You are invited to a champagne opening at the Lake Oswego fetsival of the arts Friday 6:00-7:30

Is it furniture? Is it sculpture? Maybe it’s antique reproduction… could it be fine art… does anybody really care what it is? One thing is for sure, you won’t be able to decide for yourself unless you come down to see it. (O, alright... I'll show you the piece here in my blog, but not till after the opening).  FYI, the piece has won acceptance into the prestigious American Juried Art Salon's 2010 Spring/Summer show.

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#4  6/15/10

New work:  This fun little piece, made mostly by Ron and Ben, is of Birdseye Maple, Bubinga, and Ebony.  The drawers are lined with black felt, and have movable partitions for jewelry.  Amazingly, The client does not live locally, and we never met till they picked up the piece.  We traded sketches, photos of their space, and material samples by email, and worked it all out on the phone.  It's cool to be able do business like that and finish the project  with a happy customer. 

 

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#3  12/17/09

 

I want to make you a special offer to get you to call me.  The early winter tends to be a slow time, and in this economy, who needs it, but before I tell you what the offer is, I need to clarify the company policy.  Buried three clicks deep on the “how to order” page is a statement about how we charge for design work even if you don’t buy the piece, an industry practice that doesn’t make anyone feel good, including me, because I didn’t make the sale. 

 

Everyone charges for their design time, of course, and in that regard I am a bargain, because my real business is building things.  I only charge $75/hr and I can usually turn a concept into a fresh idea with a sketch in less than 8 hours.  So I want to restate the policy in the positive.  Here it is:

 

When you buy the piece, the design fee will be credited to the purchase price. 

 

And, now for the Mark Newman economic stimulus package:  If you call me before the 1^st of February I will give you double the credit on your design fee when you buy the piece.

 

So… what are you waiting for?

 

Mark Newman

 

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#2   10/28/09

 

I want to tell you about a very exciting and prestigious piece of work we are currently doing.  We have been given the opportunity to restore the paneling in the governor’s office at the Oregon state capital building after a fire.  All four walls of the room were paneled in walnut, work that was originally done by the WPA in the 1930s.  Only one wall actually burned, but the other 3 walls were damaged by smoke, water, and firefighting equipment.  Our job is to restore the woodwork to its pre-fire condition, and, because of the historic status of the building, to conserve and reuse as much of the original material as possible.  It is an honor to be involved in a project of such civic and historic significance.

 

We are working with a great team that includes two architect firms, SRG Partnership (the lead group) and Peter Meijer (historic restoration consultant), the general contractor, Howard S. Wright, and our finisher, Frank McGinness Company.  Frank was originally approached by the general as a finishing consultant to solve the major challenge of refinishing old damaged panels to match new panels and having it all be consistent with the original work that was done 80 years ago.  Frank then brought us in to build all the new elements, and to disassemble and reassemble the original parts.  Ben Kline has been our lead carpenter for this project, and is doing a fantastic job.

 

It is fascinating to discover the thought processes, aesthetics, and techniques of the original designers and craftsmen.  The WPA craftsmen were masters, some of whom had been woodworking since before the turn of the 20th century.  The joinery is very intricate, but you would not know it.  They did not have the  interest in showing the structure of things that is common today.  In one case, I needed to carefully document the haunched mortise and tenon joints in some frames that Ben copied exactly from the originals, because, once the frames were assembled, they looked like simple miter joints.  On the other hand, their standards for matching the grain were much lower than the modern aesthetic.  We had to go to the source in Iowa to find a log of walnut that matched the quality of the original veneers, but then discovered, after having it all laid-up from one log in sequenced panels, that it was too perfect compared to the original.  After some study we figured out a more random cutting pattern that was closer to the original intent.

 

We are proud to be a part of this endeavor.

 

By the way, in case you’re concerned about how the state is spending your tax dollars… it’s all covered by fire insurance.

 

Mark Newman

 

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#1    8/28/09

 

Wow – the response to our new website has been just amazing. With our first Google campaign only a few weeks old, the stream of visitors to the site has multiplied, the number of people calling has increased, and we even have some new customers. I’m not the kind of person to claim victory before the fight is over, but against this recession, I am feeling my oats. Thanks to all of you who have visited our site, and especially to those of you who have put your trust in us, our new clients.

 

After more than a year of planning, design, and development, we went live with the new website earlier this summer, and just in time. We have been working for almost a year on a job that has been in the pipeline since well before the economy tanked.  It has kept us busy, and I have been feeling lucky.  But now I’m feeling (dare I say it) smart.  Marketing that works is a pretty amazing thing to a mere woodworker.  With permission of the owner, I will share more about that project in a future blog.

 

I also owe thanks to Jeff Lee who got me going on web marketing, Janelle who keeps me straight on a daily basis, the guys in the shop, and, of course, my best beloved, Cathy, who brings in a second income.  

 

Mark Newman

 

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