Personalities diversify furniture maker

Waimarino Bulletin, Volume 4, Issue 7, 15 July 1986, Page 12

Personalities diversify furniture maker

The blank, shuttered appearance of Makers furniture workshop in Duncan Street, Raetihi, belies the warmth, friendliness and creativity that lie within. Allan Brown, the local shearer who exhanged his handpiece for a lathe, confidently describes the business as a "firmly established living unit". At present he is designing and making the kauri furniture for a 50-seater upmarket restaurant in Wangani, due to open in late September. This assignment will take 3'A months to complete. Allan makes only to order and there is an 18 month waiting list. Being a sociable fellow and also realising he had the

heart of so many crafts in his workshop — lathes, saws, hand tools — he decided he needed someone to work with. It did not take much enticing to get his friend , Hugo Barnes to desert the neon lights of Auckland and join him in Raetihi. Hugo is now very happily ensconced at one end of the building making his beautiful handcrafted chairs. The off-cuts fire the pot belly stove that helps to keep the Waimarino winter at bay. Cold chisels and cold hands are unhappy partners! A month ago yet another part of the workshop began to emanate warmth when Ivan Rewi moved in. "People kept bringing me furniture to restore so I asked Ivan if he would like to join us and do the restoration work," said Allan.

Ivan, whose wife Bessina owns the second hand shop the Welcome Inn, has done quite a bit of furniture restoration for friends over the years. But until Allan offered him the space and equipment he has never had the opportunity to do it professionally. "It's really good to have the right set-up in the right environment," he says. Ivan is no stranger to small town life. He was brought up by his grandparents in the small bush town of Minginui in the Ureweras. "There is a general store, a church and not much else". Most of Ivan's family are still in that area. Ivan is ready and waiting for your furniture that needs restoration.

For someone who makes chairs Hugo Barnes doesn't appear to have spent much time sitting down. He grew up in Keri Keri, left school half-way through the fourth form and then spent a few months in Africa with his father. On his return to New Zealand he worked for a potter and later completed one year of an apprenticeship with a furniture maker who specialised in chairs. That was nine years ago and he has been making chairs in garages and spare rooms ever since. "When I need£d money I worked in a demolition crew and once in a movie crew in Queestown, but these jobs were only to supplement the chair making. 1 haven't got school Certificate and I didn't finish my apprenticeship, I've done all this off my own bat," says Hugo. Allan Brown and Hugo go back a long way, in fact Allan once rented workshop space from Hugo in Auckland. Allan's suggestion that he move to Raetihi came just at the right time as he needed to find a new workshop and also wantcd to live in the country. The move has also led to Hugo getting a loan of $5000 from the Whanganui Regional Employment Board which he will use to upholster his business. The board is funded by individuals who make contributions in the form of koha. If you are a contributor you are then eligible to apply for a loan. The aim of the board is to give people the chance to get

into business and to create employment. A successful applicant must show that they have a viable business proposition. Hugo was required to go before the board accompanied by one of his chairs, and a work plan for orders already taken. He was also interviewed in his workshop by a couple of board representatives. At present'Hugo is fulfilling the $10,000 worth of orders that he received when he exhibited his wares at the New Zealand Crafts Shows in Tauranga and Hawkes Bay earlier this year. He makes dining chairs, rocking chairs and office chairs. Each chair is made to fit the person. Rocking chairs have to be made differently for men and women.

"Men tend to have heavier top halves and women heavier bottom halves - it all has to be balanced out when making the chair." Having found it difficult to obtain a constant supply of seasoned native hardwood, Hugo is using imported woods. These include the popular Australian blackwood, from the wattle family, and oak and walnut. "My motto for chair making is to make them friendly, comfortable and inviting, and to try to make them flow with spirit visually and physically." "People think a chair is just a chair, but there is so much to it — the design, making them — I could work on chairs all my life."