Australian Wood Review - June 2018

http://www.woodreview.com.au 49

A Dream

Commission

Simeon Dux’s recent breakfront bookcase

commission was a challenging but

enjoyable experience.

I

t’s not often you get a client who keeps telling you to add

more and more detail to a piece you’re making for them.

Yet, that’s how it was for Melbourne maker Simeon Dux,

33 former carpenter and joiner turned fine woodworker.

‘I had these wonderful clients with really lovely taste. They

wanted a piece that would match the style of their other

furniture and they kept asking me to add more and more

decorative features,’ said Simeon.

The brief was for a display cabinet to house an eclectic

collection of books and other items. It would sit in a home

office and was to have a ‘library feel’. With a love of antique

furniture and detailing, Simeon’s clients were looking for a

piece that would complement and not take away from their

other treasured pieces.

The resulting breakfront bookcase was the product of research

into Georgian, Regency and Federal styles with elements of

each brought in and blended. The bookmatched door panels

and drawer fronts came out of a 2.7m x 350mm x 38mm

board of American black walnut. Extensive crossbanding,

barred upper doors and built-up crown mouldings made

this commission an exploration of traditional techniques.

Was he nervous at the outset of such a large commission?

‘To be honest, no. I just divided the job into sections – but

I did have to settle myself down, and I did underestimate

what was involved.’

Getting it done over a three month period (less a few

weeks on other jobs) kept the pressure on, as did the

fact there was no material to spare. ‘There were a few

new things I was forced to do because of the design of

the piece, but it was a good learning experience as well,’

Simeon explained. ‘Basically I had to get everything

perfect first-off. I didn’t have the materials or the time

to muck anything up and have another go.’

‘If I’d had to redo the crossbanding of the veneers on the doors

it would have set me back another four or five days, getting

FEATURE

Breakfront bookcase in American
walnut by Simeon Dux.