Virtuoso: The Tool Cabinet and Workbench of Henry O. Studley

by Donald C. Williams

In a space of just 10” x 39” x 19-1/2”, H.O. Studley managed to arrange – with perfection – more than 250 of his tools into a dovetailed mahogany cabinet that has captivated tens of thousands of woodworkers since it was first unveiled in 1988 on the back cover of Fine Woodworking with a single shocking photograph.

After a brief stay at the Smithsonian, the cabinet was sold to a private collector and hasn’t been seen by the public for well over a decade. Studley’s workbench has never been on public view.

For the last four years, Donald Williams and a team of supporting characters has been researching, documenting and photographing both the cabinet and Studley’s equally amazing workbench to create “Virtuoso: The Tool Cabinet and Workbench of Henry O. Studley.”

This book is the first in-depth examination of one of the most beautiful woodworking tool chests ever constructed and presents the first-ever biography of Studley (1838-1925), a piano and organ builder in Quincy, Mass. In this book, Williams uses original research to answer the questions that flash through the minds of everyone who views the cabinet:

How did he build it?

How does it work?

And why would anyone construct such a monument to his tools?

In this book you will find measurements, details and photographs of all the tools in the cabinet. Every swinging frame, hinged panel and nook of this three-dimensional, multi-layered sculpture has been analyzed so you can understand how it folds in on itself like a giant piece of mahogany origami.

You will meet the man himself, H.O. Studley, and get a glimpse into the trade of high-end organ and piano makers in 19th- and 20th-century New England.

But most of all, you will see the cabinet in a way that only a handful of privileged people ever have. And you will realize that the magazine photograph that electrified the woodworking world in 1988 only scratches the surface of the cabinet’s complete magnificence.

Genres: Woodwork

216 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 2015

Reviews

[William Adams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful photography, and excellent writing. As a book however, it is marred by mediocre micro-typography, and a number of errors, including one photo which is duplicated (a pair of large flat pliers), resulting in a missing photo (the iconic pair of needle-nosed pliers from the right-hand side).

Hopefully a second printing will correct the errors and make the text as perfect as its subject.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great subject, and a great effort to illuminate this object of obsession, but it falls short on several fronts: the explanation of Masonic elements of the tool chest is weak, photography is second rate (weird shadows, distracting backgrounds, poor shot selection).

[Pete Dal Ferro · Rating 5 out of 5]

A perfect companion work to seeing the cabinet or dreaming about it. Fantastic photos.