Marquetry would be originating from Asia Minor (350 B.C.). In the 15th century, in Italy and more particularly in florence, the artistic marquetry developed with Francesco Di Giovanni Di Matteo.
At the end of the 19th century, artists began to use again marquetry for the design of the furniture “Art Nouveau”. In France the most representative heart of this trend was the school of Nancy with Emile Galle and Majorelle. At the same time but with a different spirit, the alsatian Charles Spindler worked on a new style of furniture with marquetry and made paintings with marquetry as the ones in the restaurant “Chez Jenny”.
The marquetry art looks like mosaic art. With the help of a very fine saw, the artist cut out the multiple parts of the future marquetry in various veneers, following the outlines. The marquetry is then put together, part by part like a puzzle.
The veneers, around 1 millimeter deep, come from unrolled tree-trunks. They make up the palette of the designer. There are more than one hundred different tree species and more than one thousand different varieties. This palette doesn’t try to challenge the one of the painter but every vein, every shade, every whim of the nature is judiciously used to reproduce the visions of the artist. Burr from Burma, thuja from marocco, amboyna from Indonesia go well with elm , maple from Canada, magnolia or birch from finland.
The parts are then glued together on a plywood support. The painting will be delicately sanded before being varnished or polished.
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