From his hillside workshop in Fintown, in the heart of Donegal, Ciaran McGill creates stunning veneer pieces for clients around the world.
Modern machines sit next to traditional tools. veneer sheets in hues and grains of a range of wood types are mirrored in pieces in various stages of completion. There is a strong sense of productivity, creativity, excellence that comes from good skills and meticulous attention to detail.
Ten years since he made the decision to start his own business at the age of 24, Ciaran has built up a strong client base and an amazing portfolio of work.
His love for carpentry began in his youth, when he was on the premises with his father.
“It was plaster, but I always wanted to work with wood,” says Ciaran. “I was introduced to this in high school.”
From there, Ciaran went to GMIT Letterfrack where he studied furniture design and construction. This led him to spend time in the UK and complete a master’s degree in furniture design at London Metropolitan University.
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He worked in a series of workshops, developing his skills and learning about the business. One of these workshops specialized in marquetry, a technique of particular interest to the young craftsman. Marquetry is the art of cutting and applying pieces of veneer to a structure to form decorative patterns and designs.
“I realized then that it was very difficult to find a job that combined everything in terms of design, merchandising and furniture making, so I decided to come back to Ireland and set up the business,” says Ciaran.
As a young craftsman, starting a new business could have been daunting, but Ciaran took a measured approach. He made samples and took them to companies and people he was interested in working with. He took part in exhibitions, took on private commissions and over time built up a strong client base.
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Ciaran’s varied work to date includes bespoke tables, decorative boxes, chessboards, even a four-poster bed and other large furniture.
Sometimes he designs the entire piece, other times the customer has made a piece of furniture and calls on Ciaran to make a matching veneer. In some cases, he makes items for other artisans, such as boxes for Castlebar jeweler Nigel O’Reilly.
Ciaran married Grainne last year and the couple have two young children, a boy and a girl. And with his first decade in business now complete, he’s looking to the future.
“I’d like to work on bigger projects, big tables, conference tables, big free projects and more private commissions, and I’m hoping to move to bigger premises,” he says. “That’s the main ambition, to do more of my own design work and projects from start to finish.”
So what advice does Ciaran have for budding crafters hoping to make a living from their craft?
“The first few years are hard to get into the business and generate revenue and pay the salary, so start small and go from there,” he says.
“If you can get experience, for example, if you’re a potter, work for a potter, that helps. What you learn working for them will save you tons of time down the line. That would be key, to get that experience.”
Ciaran’s work and contact details can be found at theveenerist.com
This feature appeared in Donegal Life magazine earlier this year. The current issue is in stores now, packed with a fantastic selection of local interviews, travel, food and drink, entertainment and more.
