Futuristic vision

View to north

Most recently completed job: a 22-foot-long wall paneled in custom-veneered oak for our customer, architect Larry Phelps. The credit for this thrilling vision goes entirely to Larry, who had waited quite a few years to see this idea brought to life in his home before he called me last fall. 

A 3/8-inch ground veneered in straight-grain red oak is scribed to the ceiling, wraps around the wall’s ends, and returns at the rear. The panels were veneered by Heitink Veneers with sequence-matched plainsawn red oak, then cut to precise dimensions and edgebanded in my shop. (I like that use of the passive voice, as though the work was done automatically.)

A key component of Larry’s vision is an ingenious treatment for a flat-screen TV. He fabricated a compartment behind the paneling, painted the interior black to make it invisible, and concealed it all behind a tinted screen. It’s deeply rewarding to see a customer so pleased by the realization of his own dream. As Larry writes, 

I find myself accepting that it is a magic piece of glass.  So I guess the illusion is complete, because I know what’s going on and it doesn’t matter.   I have enjoyed it for a few days now and it still amazes me.  It is like looking at something from the future.

Now you see it...

Now you see it…

now you don't

and now you don’t.

 
 

 

 

One response to “Futuristic vision

  1. This is really stunning Nancy. Congratulations to you, Larry and your automatic shop for such a masterful execution.

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