Tom's guestbook People who haven't seen my work ask me what my style is. I like to respond that I have no style. As a cabinet maker, I believe that each piece has to balance the need for function, durability, and the limits of the material. I love to hear that a piece is balanced. That though it is unique if observed on its own against a plain back- drop, it performs its function with grace and humility in the real world.
Furniture is our servant.
If we can from time to time appreciate it, it civilizes us. I am most interested in what the furniture we build and the furniture we buy says about our present culture. The plain functionality of Shaker furniture bespoke the ideals of the people who made and used it. Federalism appealed to the fresh enthusiasm of the new American state. I hope it is furniture that celebrates our new freedoms of communication, movement, and freedom FROM tradition.