A Traditional PassionFarquhar's of Bowral, traditional furniture makers,
Article from McGrath Partners Agents Living Quarters,
by Paul Pearce
The Art of traditional furniture making is alive and well in the Southern Highlands,
Tucked away in the back streets of Bowral, in the Southern Highlands, is a business devoted to beauty, substance, quality and universal style. This is where you will find Farquhar's designers, makers and restorers of traditional furniture.
Andrew Farquhar and his wife, Coty, moved here from Sydney 15 years ago for a change in pace, while still pursuing their passion for creating beautiful furniture. "I always had a yen to be a farmer and I guess this is as close as I am likely to get to that lifestyle!" says Andrew.
We can be thankful that he didn't become a farmer because the community would have lost a craftsman of great skill and insight.
Andrew Farquhar was trained as a cabinet maker but he appears to have been born with a unique "eye" for design and he has achieved mastery in the meticulous and time-consuming business of custom made furniture.
"I never impose any particular style or design, I use my skills to work to the style and individual requirement of my client", he says.
His commissioned work extends over an incredible range of beautiful and demanding pieces, both new designs and reproductions.
In the photo gallery at the front of his work shop one can see examples of his creations, including a magnificent formal table setting for 16, in Australian Blackwood, with an individually carved family crest on each of the chairs and table corners. Another recent project involved the creation of a pair of Dutch Style marquetry display cabinets, made from Cherry and sycamore, that took 2100 hours to complete.
"Traditional furniture making is certainly a time consuming process, and normally begins with me visiting the client's home or office to appreciate the setting an to ascertain practical matter like access, and on major projects I might visit a client many times.
Andrew produces a full-scale drawing of an intended piece and then he will often construct a prototype to ensure that he is making exactly what his client wants. "On a recent project, we made three prototypes and did a week's work before starting on the real thing.
The timber is worked with great skill and care and few corners are cut in the process. "We still use many of the traditional tools. like old wooden spoke shaves, for shaping curved surfaces, rather than using a router, which doesn't produce the same look and feel you get with hand shaped furniture.Farquhar's growing circle of personal and corporate clientele can be found through the Southern Highlands, Canberra and Sydney, with Andrew now enjoying a national reputation. Recently, for example, he conserved some pieces at the both Kirribilli House and Admiralty House. (Home of the Prime Minister of Australia when in Sydney)
For those of you that love time and great furniture, a visit to Farquhar's at 25 Loftus Street, Bowral is a must when next in the Southern Highlands. The atmosphere in the workshop, with its wonderful 'woody' smells and the array of craftsman's tools, is a reminder of a bygone era when timber was treated with grace and affection.
