Paul Schurch

Currently I own and operate a small custom woodworking shop specializing in marquetry, and I produce up to 30 pieces of fine furniture per year. For several years I have been teaching furniture making, veneer work and marquetry, and I am dedicated to the task of passing on the knowledge I have received from the many fine teachers and masters of the trade who have taught me. I have passed this knowledge on to over ten people who have successfully completed apprenticeships and advanced internships in my shop since 1979. Up until 1995, I had been traveling once per year to Northern Italy to work in a small shop doing production marquetry for the furniture trade. I would bring my own projects in the form of drawings and raw wood veneer, and work side by side with some of the finest craftsmen in the world. They gave me a workbench, help when I needed it, and techniques that I am still using today to create decorative veneer work. My experience with these masters and journeymen was incredibly inspiring. They gave so freely of themselves, their secrets and techniques so I could pursue the ideas and visions I had for my own furniture designs and my future as a teacher. When I started my internship in marquetry, there were about twenty businesses in this area of Italy producing marquetry, now I understand there are only two shops left. It is my hope that you will make good use of this information, techniques and tools that I have to offer. It is also my hope that I will be able to introduce you to the art of decorative veneering. I wish to instill confidence, and inspire students to explore this fine craft on their own projects, and to create works of art that will be handed down for generations to come.