Thomas Neely

Thomas Neely resume
sign Tom's guestbook

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.

What do we celebrate today? What new furniture do we buy? I hope it is furniture that celebrates our new freedoms of communication, movement, and freedom FROM tradition. At the Philadelphia Furniture and Furnishings Show I saw skilled cabinet makers finding innovative solutions to old problems. Bookshelves leaned back and to the side, perhaps assymmetrically, but the books lay gently to the side without ever needing bookends. How do you build a table? How do you build a chair? I do it with my hands but with my eyes looking out the window. Figuratively, of course.

December, 1998

Future Antiques Wood Furniture

Please click on furniture for enlargements and details

Please click for Thomas Neely Commissions
New Commission: Portable Torah Ark, Adath Israel Synagogue, 2001

New Works by Thomas Neely