Nicola Tessari

Woodworker

Less is more

Nicola works exclusively with solid wood
His first pieces were built for his own house
He trained himself by reading books and online forums

Nicola Tessari was a late bloomer. He decided to become an artisan at the age of 47, after a degree in electronic engineering and a 15-year-long career in different companies in the Vicenza area. Why so late? “Maybe it was a belated vocation, maybe a reaction towards the industrial environment or the sudden discovery of a latent creativity,” he explains. Mainly he saw an unmissable opportunity to turn a passion into a job and he grabbed it with both hands. Since 2013, he works exclusively with solid wood sourced locally, near to his workshop. He specialises in furnishing elements, lamps and artistic objects, all inspired “by purity and essential designs. Redundancy is not something you would want to pair with wood, which is already too rich in details of its own,” as he puts it.

Interview

How did you learn your craft?: I’m mainly self-taught, I studied on the web and forums, then reading books and magazines. I also took short courses (usually a weekend long) with Aurelio Bolognesi and Garreth Hack and a basic turning course.
How did your passion start?: At first, it was a hobby then it turned into a necessity when I needed to furnish my house in an unconventional way, personally elaborating all the pieces, using a wonderful material such as solid wood. It took me more than a year to quit my job and open my studio, with my wife’s help and support.
Where do you source your wood?: My art is very much linked to the territory. For all my woodturning pieces I use locally cut wood found near my workshop, which is located 740 metres above sea level. For the furniture, the material comes from a sawmill that makes extensive use of local trees.
What techniques do you use?: I use all the traditional techniques related to solid wood processing. Among my tools are western and Japanese hand saws, chisels and self built planes. My designs always take into account the wood’s seasonal movements. Wood is not stationary, it absorbs and releases moisture by modifying its size.

Nicola Tessari is an expert artisan: he began his career in 2013