The Project’s focus is on the use of native Irish Burl Oak to make a specially commissioned; table, four metre long credenza and a concealed television cabinet. The intention was to celebrate this material and reveal its potential to express material depth. Although machined using traditional sawing techniques, once the wood dries it gains a 3-dimensionality that allows one see into the material while the surface undulates and contracts as the tension in the material is released.
The challenge in terms of realisation was to control the wood so it would be useful for its intended purpose; a door or a table top, while also drying the wood so it would be stable long-term. Steaming the wood at 100 degrees Celsius for 5 hours and slowly drying in a low temperature kiln for a couple of months allowed the stresses to be released from the wood and minimum cracking of the surface.
Stability of material was essential for the doors of the credenza as they are all single pieces of wood almost 500mm wide. All the doors of the cabinet were selected from a single burl oak tree while the table top and tv cabinet use oak from another exceptional burl oak tree sourced from the Belmont Demesne in Co. Wicklow. Cuts into the surface of the cabinet doors reveal the depth of the material while the subsequent movement of the remaining fins create visual intrigue. The oak was fumed with ammonia to achieve the rich brown hue. The ammonia reacting more intensely with areas with a high concentration of burl due to the increase in tannin at these points. The credenza and television cabinet are topped with Kilkenny limestone, another local Irish material.
Essentially this series of work is about surface and depth, a celebration of the qualities of solid wood, its tactility and inherent character. It is about bringing order to the organic wild material in a respectful way while creating a sense of permanence. The project was commissioned by IPUT Real Estate, Dublin.