Austrian Ernst Plischke was one of a small wave of highly trained European modernist architects who escaped Europe in the 1930’s to settle in NZ. He designed many well-known NZ buildings - including Wellington’s first sky scraper - as well as many houses and pieces of furniture. 

 

This table is a rimu version of metal table he designed in Austria in the early 1930’s and is one of the finest modernist pieces of NZ design I’ve worked on.  There was very little wrong with the table and only required a light-touch restoration of the finish in clear shellac after removing the old damaged and discoloured one.  With pieces like this it is important that the finish not get in the way of the materials, shellac is perfect for this.