About Greg

With 25 years of woodworking experience, Greg Zall's portfolio includes a wide range of accomplishments from gallery work, private commissions and public works to teaching and fine furniture specializing in inlay and veneering.

After attending the College of the Redwoods' Fine Woodworking Program, under the mentoring of master furniture maker James Krenov, Greg set up shop in Petaluma, California. Greg's aesthetic focuses on clean lines and attention to detail.

Woods from around the world of the finest quality are searched out, either becoming the inspiration for a piece of furniture or the perfect solution to a design problem. The history of collecting, harvesting and travelling to find these woods becomes part of the story of each piece of furniture. From Europe a log of pear wood is imported to the United States, dusty and old it is traded among cabinet makers. In my backyard a hundred year old hatchery is demolished, a few timbers are saved.

The designs are neither completely modern nor traditional. The aim is a design with time tested elegance and proportions, the best of the past with a fluency in the modern. Age old joinery techniques become new when seen in the light of mass produced products, so joinery is exposed to show the hand of the craftsman. Inlay and marquetry have become a specialty that takes advantage of graphic art skills.

My craft takes place in a converted chicken coop in farmland north of San Francisco, California. On summer days the windows open and swallows will fly in and out. During the winter the fireplace roars, eating all the wood in the scrap bin.

Buying work takes place through galleries or directly with the furniture maker. The process of commissioning a piece involves collaborating on designs, interpreting the ideas through discussions, into rough sketches and finally finished drawings. The hope, upon delivery, is that it may go beyond just speaking and to some it will sing.