Alan
is known for his superb craftsmanship and original designs. He
creates his pieces from the finest woods available. Below are
a few of his thoughts on the work and processes used by this extraordinary
craftsman.
"Quality
is the most important element in my work. The pieces I create
should not only be beautiful today but should stand the test of
time and provide the same enjoyment for future generations."
"Fine
furniture-making is at a zenith today due to the tools, availability
of materials and adhesives and thanks to the groundwork laid by
generations of previous furniture makers. I consider myself a
link in the chain of knowledge and feel responsible to pass it
on. So far, at least a half dozen people have worked and studied
under me."
Alan
is very particular about procuring the finest lumber available,
and then carefully selects which part of which board will be used
to highlight various design features. His simple, elegant designs
reveal and spotlight the innate beauty of this remarkable natural
resource.
"I'd
say my forte is designing individualized furniture for people,"
Rosen said. "When I work for my clients, once I build a piece
for them I will not repeat that design for anybody else. I will
repeat my speculative work for the galleries, because those are
my original designs, and a lot of people want these pieces in
different sizes and different woods."
"When
I left my two apprenticeships where I had worked primarily on
antique reproductions, it took five years before I could build
something that didn't look ancient. Now I can look almost anywhere-
car lines even- and get ideas. But I still find that my classical
training overrides everything that I do. I still proportion my
work in the classical methods, and I consider my work as 'contemporary
antiques'. I like to take a lot of old ideas and basic shapes
and clean them up- get rid of a lot of the ornamentation, and
just spend time in the detailing of the joinery."
Traditional
joinery techniques (dovetails,sliding dovetails, mortise and tenon)
are used throughout construction where appropriate.Alan's training
started with an apprenticeship to George Kaplan who ran a shop
in New York which employed 12 European cabinetmakers. "It was
a super high-end, high-quality shop. When I joined him he was
semi-retired and was performing mostly repairs on 18th and 19th
century antiques which people would bring from Park Avenue, because
he was a renowned repairer and refinisher. It was my job to take
everything apart, and then he would make the new parts. We would
then reassemble it as a team and he would refinish it. The pieces
that rolled through that shop provided me with a textbook type
of education in woodworking design. I saw for myself why some
pieces lasted and why others didn't."
The
finish is a multi-step process; the final dry-sanding is done
with 400 grit sandpaper. The wood is then burnished with a fine
synthetic pad (approximately 800-1000 grit equivalent) which polishes
it. A penetrating oil is used to flood the wood and is allowed
to soak for 1 to 2 hours. Then a mixture of polyurethane and oil
mixed with thinners is applied, then wet-sanded with 400 grit
sandpaper. This creates a 'slurry" of fine dust and oil mixture,
which seals the pores in the wood surfaces. The piece is then
buffed dry with cotton rags. This process is repeated over the
next 3 days using progressively finer grits until the final polish
is achieved. A protective coat of wax is applied as the final
step. Our finish has another major advantage; besides being tough
and beautiful, it is also very user-friendly as far as repairing
scratches, etc.
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