Wood is a noble, subtle, living substance that is central to our work. We work with many species, be they indigenous or exotic, in both solid or veneer form, allowing the expression of cabinetmaking through sculpture or marquetry, for furniture, outfitting, or boiserie projects.
Solid woods are traditionally used to make period furniture frames or ceiled panels.
It is also used for sculpture in outfitting, in boiserie design, or for cabinetmaking in crafting original furniture for our contemporary collections.
The bookcase and daybed from the 2022 Amarante collection, for example, are made of solid ash. The wood is simply oiled, reflecting the designers’ desire bring out the natural beauty and aesthetic presence of the raw material.
The use of veneer in furniture-making was developed in France during the Renaissance. The expansion of world trade and maritime expeditions to Africa and Asia led to more widespread reliance on veneer.
The vessels loaded with cotton and spices were ballasted with wood, a material that the sailors left behind on the port quays once their goods were unloaded. As these wood pieces were generally small, they could not be used in traditional applications. To avoid wasting them, however, carpenters processed them into sheets of wood and, over time, this conversion method became more refined and the wood sheets could be attached to cabinetry frames.
While the Industrial Revolution and the new technical processes it engendered helped accelerate and expand the use of veneers – such as moving from sawing to slicing, helping to further reduce wood waste –, the savoir-faire has remained the same.
Today, cabinetmakers can make use of every part of the tree. From the stump to the top log, they find value in quarter cuts vein and edges, butts and various cut angles, even wood altered by flaws or diseases, like burr. Beyond the species itself, whether it is exotic – like rosewood, mahogany, lemon tree, kingwood, or ebony –, or native – like walnut, oak, or ash –, each part of the tree gives veneer its own unique appearance.
Our workshops have a veneer base of rare species dating from the 20th century, such as ...
Much like selecting colorful, shimmering textiles, designers choose from these woods based on the vein, the grain, and the patterns that naturally appear in the veneer sheets and can further fuel their creative imagination.
Sculpture is a very old, multifaceted form of savoir-faire. The wood sculpting practiced in our cabinetmaking workshops involves not only many different techniques, but widely varying working methods. From the personal – approaches, movements – to the technical – tools, media –, implementation of the art of sculpture differs widely, depending on a given craftsperson’s practice.
Like any art, it is a vector for expression of a culture and, in practice, it differs from country to country, region to region, each having a savoir-faire that has been passed down from generation to generation. Nevertheless, all styles and techniques have one thing in common: As with sculpting in stone, sculpting in wood is done by subtraction, by removing material.
The savoir-faire of the wood carver necessarily involves patience and great dexterity, but also strength in order to create patterns or shapes, figures or ornamentation in the wood. In our workshops, we sculpt in bas-reliefs of varying depth or in the round. In the first case, the process consists of sculpting volumes on a flat panel of wood. In the second, it entails sculpting in three dimensions with smooth surfaces and rounded corners. Nevertheless, the sculptor’s first step is to draft sketches of the intended creation. Using a pencil, a ruler, a compass, and sometimes a square, sculptors draw the model of what they are going to achieve. When sculpting in the round, they most often use a mold that serves as a model, for a better understanding of the volumes involved. Once this sketch has been completed, the sculptor takes up various essential tools that will be guided by his or her expert hand. A wood carving knife, gouges, chisels, a mallet – every tool has a specific function. The finishes, too, require specific tools, such as very fine-grained abrasives for sanding, rasps, and jack planes.
Our sculptors possess savoir-faire that lets us beautify our interior architecture projects, both in outfitting – using soft woods such as linden, butternut, or white pine – and in cabinetmaking – with hard woods such as black walnut, white oak, mahogany, or maple.
Marquetry is a process of composing an ornamental decoration with sheets of wood and any number and type of additional materials: from mineral to organic, from sedimentary to metallic. Geometric, floral, abstract, or figurative, embellishing and ennobling with stone, bone, or metal, marquetry is a craft that requires a creative mind and flawless knowledge of the characteristics of the countless wood species. For this art form that requires meticulousness, manual skill, finesse, and dexterity, the academic knowledge possessed by our craftspeople allows them great freedom of creative expression. Used for making parquet as well as furniture, marquetry has a vast spectrum of applications.
Its origins date back to the Renaissance, although there are some traces of marquetry in Ancient Egypt. In France, this art reached its peak under Louis XIV. Cabinetmaker André-Charles Boulle was particularly influential on marquetry, creating his own style as well as disseminating his technique of hand-cutting pieces individually. Boulle marquetry on furniture can be recognized by its composition containing brass or tortoiseshell, often further enhanced by components in dyed horn, pewter, or copper.
Today’s tools produce marquetry of great finesse and precision, allowing for a rich palette of materials applied in infinite variations. It can incorporate a wide variety of woods, such as various rosewoods or kingwood, amaranth, ebony, or even mahogany. By sawing at any number of angles and in any number of thicknesses, with, against, or across the grain, our craftspeople can create extremely diverse decorations, such as floral bouquets, geometric veneers in cubes, stars, or mosaics that become veritable abstract or figurative tableaux.
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The creativity of the interior design and decoration studio is born of a profound understanding of the historic languages of ornamentation. This mastery of the classic catalogs and their legacies allows greater freedom in interpreting aesthetic codes. The studio creates contemporary, inspired spaces that resonate fully with their owners. An essential prerequisite to our company’s approach.
The professionals in our design studio, masters of the history and hallmarks of luxury furniture, annually design one full contemporary collection, along with many bespoke pieces for exacting connoisseurs and collectors. This expertise builds upon more than 180 years of design work in the most varied styles, creating hand-in-hand with our group’s in-house workshops. Possessing such comprehensive knowledge of materials and finishes, our furniture-design teams are wholly at ease devising the most complex pieces of furniture using wood, stone, leather, precious stones, both wood and straw marquetry, and even metal.
Our company – boasting its own production workshops and approaching its second century of operations – brings together many skills specific to French decorative arts. Be it our boiserie and interior design workshops, our furniture and bronze workshops, or our design offices, more than a dozen forms of savoir-faire are expertly practiced at our three sites, each having its own venerable history, a legacy that is further enriched as it is taught by one generation to the next.
They are complementary, often complex, traditional, or innovative, and combine the nobility of handcraftsmanship and the perfection of age-old techniques with digital precision and other new practices born of technological advancements. Their uses are dedicated to the making of exceptional pieces and are mastered by women and men who, with passion and respect, transform the material into something even greater than itself and bring to life all the interiors imagined by our designers and executed for our trusting clients.
Joining in creative collaboration with passionate artisans who bring their savoir-faire to life, expertly honing raw materials into singular designs, is not only a strength, it is a choice. Rinck’s love for the decorative arts often finds expression in alliances with other companies, artists, and craftspeople who embrace the same values of excellence and aesthetics.
Over the past several decades, Rinck has perfected a precise project-management process making it possible to undertake top-quality missions working with decorators, interior designers, and architects who are not only the most accomplished in their fields, but the most exacting, as well.
More often than not, our references choose to remain discreet, as the owners of yachts and superyachts, luxurious New York City townhouses, and princely London palaces. Quite a few, however, are household names.
Our multi-material methodology (wood, metal, glass, stone, etc.) and end-to-end process – from the work of the engineering and design department to the installation to the worksite supervision – have earned our clients’ steadfast trust. Each of these fitting and/or furnishing commissions is entirely customized and unique. Each new project is also another chance for us to adapt our savoir-faire to original requirements, improve our working tools, and further hone and broaden our skills to satisfy the needs of our specifiers.
