Revolutionizing an ancient art form for modern times

The modern exterior of 85-year-old artist William Tunberg’s house in Venice, California does not reveal much about his expertise in the ancient art of marquetry. However, as soon as I step into his house, my eyes fall on a beautiful, wooden dining chair with a cherry blossom pattern on it. On closer inspection, I am surprised to find that the design has been crafted with small pieces of veneer and wood laid together to form this complex design.

Marquetry, the art of assembling wood veneers into decorative patterns onto structures like wooden furniture, can be traced to the ancient Romans to as early as the first century. During the reign of King Louis XIV of France, this art form was the most prized. Through his use of marquetry in fine arts sculpture, Tunberg is credited with modernizing marquetry for the 21st century. Drawing inspiration from his personal experiences, he shapes the pieces of veneer into imagery which is later laminated into sculpture form.

“My inspiration is from my drawings; what you can do with a pencil you can do with a knife. I start with recognizable images on veneer that I usually cut with a laser or with a knife,” he said about his process.

The veneer is then inlaid into a laminated wood form that he has made using plywood or mahogany and taped to hold its shape. After drying the veneer in the vacuum press overnight, he sands the tape off. Tunberg’s marquetry designs have a minimum of six layers. He starts off with a simple design cut on veneer, which he then adjusts with layers or more cuts to create a more intricate final product.

His works can be found at museums, corporate offices, universities, and several places of worship across the country. One of his most memorable pieces is a piece commissioned by Chapman University in Orange, California for their Fish Interfaith Center. Tunberg worked with architect David C. Martin on a piece that celebrates Christianity, Judaism, Islam, and Sikhism.

“They had initially asked me to make a cross for the chapel. They then asked me to build an ark to house a handwritten Torah that was smuggled out of Nazi Germany. And later, after several internal discussions, they wanted a piece that celebrates other religions for the interfaith center. I created a multifaith standard with an interchangeable top – you can swap out the cross for the Star of David or a symbol from the Islamic faith or one from the Sikh faith,” he said about the piece.

An avid reader, when Tunberg is commissioned with a piece, he spends a few weeks reading about the subject. This helps pull out aspects of the subject that are visually interesting, and he then begins the process of drawing and cutting veneer.

“I read only as much as I need. Religion is so complex, and if I wanted to completely understand a religion, it might take me a lifetime. So when I was reading for this piece, I looked for design elements I could tie together,” he said about the research process. “My purpose is to make something that people can also instantly recognize. For instance, for the ark, I knew that the Ten Commandments are the most important thing in Judaism. The first five are concepts that God gives to man, and the last five are what man has to return. In the marquetry, I portrayed the first five on the right side, so when you enter the worship space, that’s the first thing you see, and when you leave, you see the last five. They are written in Hebrew on the marquetry, and people have to study it to find it. I wanted people to become involved in the art piece.”

At 85-years-old, Tunberg is not done exploring art forms. He has begun experimenting with watercolor paintings and pencil drawings. “My drawings are pretty realistic, just like this pencil portrait of my father-in-law Alfred Shaheen,” he said, pointing at a picture I had assumed was a black and white photograph, but upon closer look was clearly carefully sketched in graphite. “I follow Norman Rockwell’s technique. In his autobiography, he talks about how he couldn’t get people to pose for him. He resorted to taking photographs of his subject. He would use piles of photographs and put them together for a quicker and more precise outcome. Similarly, I asked my wife Camille to take a bunch of photographs of me, and I selected the best ones and used them as a guide for my self-portraits. It takes me a couple of weeks to sketch them.”

The portrait of Alfred Shaheen prompts Tunberg’s wife Camille to share her father’s story; he is credited with pioneering and popularizing the Hawaiian shirt. Shaheen is not only Tunberg’s famous relative – his father, also William, is a writer and one of his notable works is Old Yeller. Tunberg’s uncle, Karl Tunberg is an Oscar-nominated screenwriter for Ben-Hur.

“He does everything,” his wife Camille said lovingly, looking around their home, wherefrom the furniture, to the patterned inlay on the staircase, to the fruit bowl on the counter, to the self-portrait on the wall, Tunberg’s artistic prowess stands out.