Gareth Neal

Cabinetmaker

©Petr Krejci Photography

©Charlotte Schreiber

Bridging two worlds

Gareth has collaborated with designer Zaha Hadid
One of his pieces is in the permanent collection of the V&A
He made a throne to mark the 300th anniversary of the reign of George I

Within two years of graduating from Buckinghamshire University in 1996, Gareth Neal was exhibiting his furniture alongside work by luminaries Ron Arad, John Makepeace, Tom Dixon and Edmund de Waal. Having achieved rising star status, he was mentored by two significant British talents: Rupert Williamson and Fred Baier. It was the latter who encouraged him to explore the possibilities of combining traditional hand techniques with digital innovation. “My approach to digital technology and its relationship to craft is a specialist point of knowledge that allows me to push the possibilities of what can be done,” Gareth says. Since 2005, he has run his own progressive studio in East London, continuing his life of craft research.

Interview

©Petr Krejci Photography

©Petr Krejci Photography

When did you decide to pursue furniture making?: My dad was helping restore a village theatre and to keep me busy when we visited the site, he gave me a pile of wooden offcuts to play with, from which I made a double storey bird table. I must have been about seven. By the time I was 14, I had signed up to an adult education woodcarving course.
How would you define what you do?: I have a deep seated respect for traditional craft techniques combined with a curiosity about the future and the changing definition of skills. My own mentor was Fred Baier, an avant garde furniture designer who was also an early pioneer of computer-aided design.
What was your first piece of work to achieve international recognition?: A side table called Anne that appeared to show the ghost of a Queen Anne style table trapped within a contemporary design. It was celebrated for its innovative use of digital technology, but was in fact handmade as a commentary on the skills of traditional cabinetmaking.
What does it mean when something is well made?: That an object will last a lifetime and that people will fall in love with it to such an extent they will want to enjoy it all of their life.

Gareth Neal is an expert artisan: he began his career in 2002