Dennis Zongker captured the Grand Prize in the 2023 Veneer Tech Craftsman’s Challenge with a Art Deco styled music box that wowed the judges with its superlative craftsmanship, thoughtful use of veneer, and tremendous attention to detail.

Besides Zongker’s Grand Prize win, awards were also announced for Architectural Woodworking, Cabinetry, Furniture, Marquetry, Specialty Products, and Student Work for this annual contest that champions the best woodworking using veneer. Winners were announced at the AWFS Fair in Las Vegas.

Zongker’s Grand Prize-winning piece measures just 15 inches wide, 10-3/4 inches tall, and 10-3/4 inches deep. It features flat cut Gabon ebony and flat cut holly veneers over a solid birch substrate. Four segmented turned legs frame the piece with 1/32-inch veneer glued with solid ebony to make the shapes. Opening the lid reveals a marquetry tableau of musical notes.

“My goal was to design and make the box to fit into the time period of 1919 to 1939, which was the Art Deco style in history,” said Zonger, who is from Omaha, Nebraska. He said he designed the box with a precisely sized sound hole and a thin, floating bottom on which to mount the 72-note movement. “This produces a nice tone and louder sound with the top open or closed,” he said.

Judges in the contest couldn’t hear the music, but they sang the praises of the piece all the same. “Exceptional work. Great color choices to represent the Art Deco Style,” said Marc Adams, director of the Marc Adams School of Woodworking. “From the waterfall edging to the decorative inlay in the turnings to the perfect grain color to the diamonds, this piece is astounding.”

“As soon as I saw this piece, it jumped out at me as superlative work,” said Will Sampson, editorial director of Woodworking Network. “There was no disagreement among the judges that this was the clear winner.”

The third judge in the contest was Ana Rothman, vice president of business development at Montbleau, a leading architectural woodwork firm.

For his achievement, Zongker wins a cash prize of $1,500 and a veneer credit from Certainly Woods worth $2,500. Category winners each won $500 cash prizes and a $1,250 veneer credit from Certainly Woods. Here are more details about the category winners.

Architectural Woodwork
Journey from Cuzco, Spider Johnson, Tesoro Design earned the top prize in the Architectural Woodwork category. The 7x8-foot piece covers an entertainment center in Austin, Texas. It features a tableau inspired by Peruvian burial dolls and uses dyed and natural veneers, including elm burl, red gum, composite veneers, walnut burl, bubinga, maple, harewood, mappa burl, madrone burl, and teak.

“Our goal was to expand the theme of her collection (of Peruvian burial dolls) on a grander scale and remind the client of her favorite travel location, the city of Cuzco, while providing an appealing complementary design to fit the room,” said Johnson, who is based in Mason, Texas.

Judges in the contest were impressed. “I really like the way the marquetry image seamlessly flows from one door to another,” said Adams. “This alignment can be a difficult process and takes a lot of planning. This piece gives the room a feel of a beautiful wall painting, while at the same time conceals the function of the cabinet. It gives the cabinet a story to tell through the veneer. It is very successfully done.”

Cabinetry
Timothy Schefter said he had not used veneer before attempting this massive project involving 195 doors, drawers, and panels for a total of 644 square feet, all done in quartersawn sapele veneer. In a departure from traditional design, he decided to orient the grain horizontally, creating more challenges in the production. Still, the result were excellent, prompting judges to award him the Cabinetry top prize.

Not only did Schefter have to overcome the education challenge, he was working in Rocky Mountain elevations, which made vacuum veneering challenging. Even so, the results stand out.

“For someone who has never done work with veneer, I would like to shake your hand,” said Adams. “Veneer always has challenges when using it on large projects. By choosing to run the grain horizontally, then making the figure look level to the environment took a lot of effort and planning. 

Furniture
Styled after a piece that was probably made for one of Marie Antoinette’s palaces, the “Marquetry of Cubes Ladies Desk” by Steven Lash is a masterpiece of subtle complexity in classical lines. Wood species used include Honduras mahogony, beech, holly, ebony, and amboyna. 

“I believe the beauty of the desk is the simplicity of the marquetry of cubes and the contrasting colors of the veneer inserts,” said Lash, who is an adjunct clinical professor at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry when he is not crafting spectacular furniture. “I believe the crowing design element in the desk was the placement of the rows of 1/8-inch by 15/16-inch mahogany veneer cubes in an alternative grain direction that gives the surfaces of the desk a unique appearance and enhances its charm.”

Said judge Marc Adams, ”Your eye for detail is apparent, and your workmanship is impeccable.”

In addition to the prize for the top Furniture category, Lash also won for being a first-time entrant.

Marquetry
A lifelike Grizzly bear and cubs march across the front and sides of this elegant sideboard, and opening the drawer reveals a marquetry of a Western Bluebird and aspen leaves, all done by Wayne Delyea. The piece features solid walnut and veneers of spalted maple, Peruvian walnut, Santos rosewood, Mappa burl, holly, ziricote, poplar, ebony, Nogal walnut, Australian walnut, and quilted maple, all in natural colors.

“Veneers open doors to the woods from around the globe that would be almost impossible to obtain otherwise,” said Delyea, who does business as Wayne Delyea Furniture Maker in Granbury, Texas. “The veneers allow my creativity in design to reach beyond what may otherwise appear possible.”

Judges commented on the thoughtful selection of veneers. “The colors work well together,” said Adams. “The movement of bears gives this piece an animated feel which causes the onlooker to explore all the of exposed cabinet.”

Specialty Products
Tuca, Chico Margarita, Ophicina São Francisco, won top prize in the Specialty Products category with a veneer painting of dragonflies. The piece features natural veneers including pau ferro, pau marfim, freijo, roxinho, as well as toned veneers.

“Wood frames for me are like cavasses for a painter,” said the maker. “I just make them through marquetry, and my favorite paints are natural wood veneers.”

Student Design
A wall cabinet by Kiya Vega-Hutchens (@kvhmakes), Vermont Woodworking School, won for Student Design, taking its inspiration from a New York tenement building.

“The wall cabinet is a representation of my childhood apartment building,” said Vega. “It is the first piece in a series that I hope will explore memory and shifting landscapes of New York City. I drew inspiration from the Lower East Side and my childhood memories of the 1990s.”

The inspiration continues to the inside of the cabinet where the shelving pattern replicates the floor plan of the building.

About Veneer Tech Craftsman’s Challenge
Originally created by Veneer Technologies, the Veneer Tech Craftsman’s Challenge is one of the most prestigious competitions for veneer woodwork in the world. Still sponsored by Veneer Tech, the contest is currently owned and administered by CCI Media LLC, parent of Woodworking Network and FDMC magazine. This year’s contest is also sponsored by Certainly Wood.