Sometimes a door is just a door. But at a certain medical clinic in Wisconsin where researchers are seeking remedies for PTSD and severe depression, there’s a 7-ft.-high, 12-ft.-wide sliding door between the kitchen and dining room that features a marquetry mural by Spider Johnson and Cindy Goldman.

The mural was designed specifically for the space and specifically for the purpose of offering solace and hope to people recovering from deep trauma—a door out of the dark. Johnson, who lives in Mason, Tex., first twigged to marquetry in 1979 when he saw some work by Silas Kopf in FWW #16, and he’s been pursuing the craft ever since.

Twelve years ago, Johnson took on as an apprentice fellow Texan Cindy Goldman. The former advertising creative director learned so quickly and so well that in a year or so, she became his partner in marquetry. For many years, Johnson cut his marquetry with a scrollsaw, but in 2000, he bought a laser cutter with a 4-ft.-sq. bed, and he’s never looked back.

The cutting is easier with a laser, but on a project like this, with the marquetry composition applied across four 3-ft. by 7-ft. panels that needed to match up perfectly when they were joined and installed on-site, there was plenty else for Johnson and Goldman to attend to. Veneers include madrone burl for the ground; walnut burl for the roots; goncolo alves for the trunk; red gum, pau ferro, and satinwood for the leaves; dyed veneer for the wind; and composite veneer for the sky.

—Jonathan Binzen

Photos: courtesy of Spider Johnson and Cindy Goldman