A. Parker Furniture

The Wheat Sheaf Cabinet was my final project at the Sam Beauford Woodworking Institute. The inspiration for it came from noticing an interesting window pattern behind a documentary presenter. I took that initial pattern and ran with it. What had started as a gothic window morphed into a set of lines bundled at the centre. That became the central motif of the piece.

I wanted the shapes to take centre stage and the wood to support those shapes; therefore, I selected straight-grained ash whenever possible. The piece needed to be tall to stretch the curves and give a sense of a large bundle, towering over the viewer. Finally, because the curves are subtle, the piece can support repetition of the core idea without over-doing it.

Technically, the piece incorporates steam-bending, bent lamination, band saw curves, marquetry, and veneering. Put together, these techniques created a cabinet that is both rooted in the Arts and Crafts style and contemporary furniture.