Woodworker: Victor DiNoviDiNovi likes to work spontaneously, more like a sculptor than a cabinetmaker. He rarely draws his pieces before building them. But he doesn’t take any risks with structural integrity or function. With training as a mechanical engineer and 40 years experience doing custom woodwork, he has developed methods of gluing up his pieces that provide maximal strength at the stress points while giving him freedom in the carving process. Where the leg meets the seat, for example, DiNovi epoxies in a series of blocks in an interlocking pattern, creating a rigid gusset on either side of the leg. The technique DiNovi uses to build up his carving blanks was traditionally used for making carousel horses and religious statuary. He does his carving with power planes, angle grinders, and pneumatic chisels. About working without reference surfaces, DiNovi says, “with the type of work I do, you are the fence.” His wenge and bubinga chair is 22-in. deep by 48-in. wide by 32-in. tall.

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