Découvre Philip Morley
La précision numérique alliée au savoir-faire traditionnel
Philip Morley est menuisier et cofondateur de la Austin School of Furniture. Dans son atelier à Wimberley au Texas, il fabrique sur mesure des meubles personnalisés. Artisan de formation classique, son travail est fortement ancré dans les traditions et le respect du passé. « Tout a déjà été fait à un moment ou à un autre », dit-il. « Si un objet est particulièrement original, il y a de fortes chances pour qu'il ne soit pas très esthétique. » Néanmoins, tout en restant très attaché aux traditions, il n'est pas opposé aux outils et techniques modernes si ces derniers sont utiles à son travail.
« Dans mon atelier, chaque outil a été choisi pour m'aider à faire mon travail de manière efficace, en toute sécurité et de la meilleure qualité possible. »
A lot of Philip's influence is rooted in Scandinavian design, in particular James Krenov—founder of the College of the Redwoods. "Krenov's works really spoke to me. It's the subtle little details, leaving things very clean and adding those little profiles." You can find these details in a lot of Philip's work, including his recently published Premium Project, available on ShaperHub.
Explore Philip's Tea Rack project on ShaperHub
Curious to learn from Philip? Explore his latest project on ShaperHub. The tea rack consists of three shelves which can be used to store all your essential tea or coffee making gear. You'll learn traditional woodworking techniques combined with Origin workflows. This project includes step-by-step instructions, photos, and a build video.
Adaptable CNC Precision
His shop is a combination of a prototype shop, a design studio and a small-batch production shop. With this variety of processes under one roof, versatility and flexibility are key components of any project and any workflow.
As his business has evolved, Morley has found it difficult to keep up with expanding demand while still working out of his original space. “I've always wanted a CNC,” Morley says. “You start thinking about budget, space, electrical needs, air compressor…There's so much that goes into that, you’re talking about 60 grand for a big CNC.” But Origin fits his needs exactly, speeding up the design process and prototyping phases of projects that can be such a timesuck.
“Anytime I can get quicker at work, that means I'm making a little bit more money on each job. That means my family is doing a little bit better.”
Designing and Iterating with Origin
Before he added Origin to his shop, Morley designed in SketchUp and then converted those designs into real-world full-scale templates. “There’s this disconnect from the computer to the shop when iterating on designs,” he says. “Before, I’d have to make the template, to make a part, then the template to make the jig, whereas with the Shaper Origin, it's really just a huge time saver. I can spit out this template, pull out my machine and within 15 minutes, I'm cutting this template.”
Se concentrer sur l'essentiel
Une meilleure efficience pour créer des gabarits et éditer des dessins permet à Philip de se concentrer sur les aspects qui lui tiennent vraiment à cœur. Cela inclut les petits détails que les clients ne remarquent peut-être même pas lorsqu'ils voient pour la première fois la pièce finie. « J'ai déjà eu des clients qui sont venus me voir pour me dire : “Hé, je viens de passer ma main sous le dossier de la chaise et de remarquer la courbure. Je n'avais aucune idée qu'elle était là, mais je trouve ça génial que tu perfectionnes même les endroits qui ne se voient pas normalement !”
« D'autres professionnels me diront : Phil, ton client s'en fiche éperdument et tu viens de passer trois heures sur ce galbe. Or, un client peut aimer un ouvrage sans même savoir concrètement ce qui lui plaît. Les gens réagissent à l'œuvre dans son ensemble, qu'ils en aient conscience ou pas. »
Pour découvrir encore plus de travaux de Philip Morley, consulte son site web et son profil Instagram.
Focusing on what matters most
These efficiency improvements in templating and design iteration help Morley to focus on the aspects of his work that he’s truly passionate about, including the tiny details that customers might not even notice when they first see the finished piece. “I’ve had clients come back to me and say, ‘Hey, I just put my hand underneath this chair arm and felt this shaping. I had no idea it was there, but I love that you cared about that part I’d never see!’
“Other pros will tell me, Phil, your client doesn’t care about that, and you just spent three hours on that profile. But when a client likes a piece, they might not even know what they like about it. They’re responding to the piece as a whole, whether they know it or not.”
To see more of his work, check out Philip’s Morley’s site and his Instagram. Check out our Spring Deal featuring Philip's work!