HOMEWARES
WILLIAM M AT T H YSEN {
CLOCK MAKER
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48 Web Street Warrandyte t: (03) 3333 3333 www.handmadeinmelbourne.com.au/ williammathysen William Matthysen is crafting a new clock. Not that you would guess it by looking at the partly rotten slab of wood propped against a wall of his cluttered studio. The piece of 500-year-old Huon pine, dredged from Tasmania’s Huon River, will form part of one of his ingenious timepieces. The South African-born artisan fell in love with clocks as a child, when he managed to pull apart then repair the family’s broken mantel clock. He recalls a real sense of achievement in getting it to work. After studying architecture at Johannesburg’s University of the Witwatersrand, William worked as an architect in Amsterdam, Hong Kong and London, moving to Melbourne in 1986. It was while studying urban design that William’s interest in clocks was rekindled. “I’m passionate about them – they provide me with the means of exploring ideas about design, materials and craftsmanship and combining them into an integrated whole.” Unlike traditional clocks, where only the clock face and its case are visible, William’s contemporary timepieces put the mechanism on show.
Inspired by kinetic sculpture, mining poppet heads, lighthouses and the grain silos that dotted the landscape of his youth, William makes three-dimensional sketches and scaled technical drawings before building a working prototype. Satisfied that design and mechanical elements are in sync, he embarks on the clock. His dexterity with timber and metal allows him to design and make both the clock housing and most of its inner workings. Depending on its complexity, each clock might take up to six months to complete and cost between $4500 (for a mantel clock) and $25,000 (for a 1.8-metre tall wall-mounted cabinet clock). Often described as “tomorrow’s antiques”, William’s thoroughly modern timepieces are made mostly by commission and have been shown in galleries across Australia and overseas. OFFERINGS } Clocks, wall mounted } Clocks, mantel } Furniture, handcrafted Handmade Guide to Melbourne
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