Our Craft Tutors

Laurent Lainé – FRENCH UPHOLSTERY

The instructor, Laurent Lainé, former head tutor at the leading school of furniture related skills – l’Ecole Boulle in Paris. He currently teaches design at there and works for many of the leading museums in France including Versailles and the Musée des Arts Décoratifs.

Lilian Shaw – STAINED GLASS AND APPLIQUE

Lilian Shaw was brought up in East Sussex, after a Pre B.A Foundation in Arts in Hastings she completed a B.A Hons in Fine Art Painting at the Wimbledon School Of Art. In the evenings she was attending stained glass courses taught by Sarianne Durie. In 1984 an old fashioned apprenticeship with Paul Quail took her to Norfolk. Whilst she continued as his technician for 20 years, working in his studio on church commissions and repairs, she also established her own practice.

She has taught for Norfolk Adult Education, Museum Services, in Schools, Youth groups and for various independant educational centres.

Throughout she has continued to paint and regularly exhibits her pastels, teaching at Waterperry Gardens and she has taught for Art in Action for many years.

Pierre-Alain Le Cousin – FRENCH POLISHING AND WAX FINISHES

Pierre-Alain currently teaches restoration at l’Ecole Boulle in Paris. He has a very impressive CV showing his work spanning over 20 years and including many of the greatest museums in France; restoring and conserving very important decorative objects. A partial listing of his prior clients include:

• Château de Fontainebleau
• Château Grand Trianon
• Mobilier National
• Château de Chaumont

As well as The Wallace Collection here in England as well as many private clients. He has been employed at the workshops of Simon Pierre Etienne and for Societe Steinitz where he restored pieces produced by David Roentgen, Andre Charles Boulle, Carlin Martin among others.

Ernest Riall, PhD (Principal Tutor) – WOOD CARVING

Ernest has studied with the leading woodcarvers in England and in France at l’Ecole Boulle. His passion is primarily focused on carving that is in the support of restoration of furniture but he is equally inspired by carving in support of artistic endeavours.

While most of his work has been with pre-18th century pieces, he has worked in a number of different styles from Arts and Crafts, Art Nouveau, Baroque and Neo Classical, as well as modern pieces.

Ernest is active in the furniture and wood section of ICON (the Institute of Conservation). He has taught Wood Carving at both Bucks New University in High Wycombe and at Lyon’s Restoration guiding students to produce a variety of creative objects from a simple leaf, to a totem pole to abstract objects in plywood to horses and the list goes on. He is the Head of the Wooburn Craft School as well as working on the Wallace Collection in London.

Christine Brewster – CHAIR CANING AND RUSHING

Christine has been a teacher of chair seating and basket making for more than twenty years and is a full-time practitioner of these crafts. She learnt cane and rush seating under the supervision of Joy Viall at Missenden Abbey, and has taught for adult education colleges and a variety of independent education organisations. She has worked as an associate lecturer at Bucks New University. She is particularly interested in the therapeutic value of practical crafts and the vital importance of continuing traditional skills.

Theo Sturge – Leather Conservator

Theo Sturge ACR FIIC is a Fellow of the International Institute for Conservation (FIIC), and an Accredited Member of the Institute of Conservation (ACR). He is an Assistant Coordinator for the ICOM-CC Leather and Related Materials Working Group.  He has over 50 years’ experience of conservation and restoration in both the public and private sector.

Theo has specialised in leather conservation for over 25 years and is probably the most experienced leather conservator in the UK. He works on gilt leather, upholstery, and the myriad of other items made from leather. He established his own business, specialising in leather conservation, the Sturge Conservation Studio, in 2000. His biggest client is the National Trust. He has been running his Practical Leather Conservation Course for over 20 years for groups of individuals and regularly teaches on university conservation courses.

He trained in conservation at the Institute of Archaeology, London University, in the early 1970’s. On leaving college he went to Leicester Museum where he was Assistant Keeper, Antiquities Conservation for 16 years followed by 6 years as Senior Keeper, Conservation and Restoration at the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum, Coventry. Immediately prior to setting up the Sturge Conservation Studio he was Senior Conservator at the Leather Conservation Centre where he evolved specialised methods for work on items as diverse as car seats and painted gilt leather wall hangings and screens.

Jude Karnon – Jewellery Maker

Jude Karnon started making jewellery as a hobby over fifteen years ago. When redundancy loomed from a website and communications role, Jude decided to turn her hobby into a successful business and Jude Karnon Jewellery launched in November 2015.

Jude works in both silver and gold and makes all pieces using traditional techniques and hand tools. Her passion is designing alongside her clients to create jewellery that encapsulates their personality, style and individualism. As well as Jude’s bespoke work, she designs and creates collections taking inspiration from nature, coastlines, sport, and history. Her main desire is to create jewellery to make people smile. She won Muddy Stilettos Best Jeweller in Herts and Beds in 2022 and was a finalist in 2023.

Jude began teaching jewellery making in 2016, and since then has welcomed over 400 willing learners to her own studio; teaching on a 1:1 basis. She is a tutor for Bucks Adult Learning, planning and teaching courses of ten weeks. Jude also teaches at a local art gallery and has taught at the Women’s Institute Denman College.

Jude has also studied gemmology with The Gemmological Association of Great Britain (Gem-A).

Maria Chernyak Belenky – Ceramics, Sculpture, and Pottery Tutor

Maria Chernyak Belenky, born in St. Petersburg, Russia, spent her teenage years in various countries, immersing herself in diverse cultures and artistic influences. Her professional journey began in the ceramics department at the Academy of Art & Design ‘Bezalel,’ where she honed her skills in ceramic sculpture and design. Expanding her artistic repertoire, Maria earned an MA in Spatial and Interior Design from New Bucks University in High Wycombe.

Elizabeth Bond Leather Making Tutor

Ivan Van Rooyan – Woodworking Tutor

Ivan, recently retired after a distinguished 44-year teaching career, is now sharing his extensive knowledge and skills with students at the Wooburn Craft School.

He has been teaching Design and Technology in the UK Since 2001, with experience spanning seven years at senior schools, teaching up to Y11 (GCSE) as well as sixteen years at The Beacon School, a prestigious prep school for boys in Amersham – Year 4-Year 8. His dedication and expertise have helped several students earn DT scholarships to various Independent Senior Schools. He also ran holiday clubs at The Beacon School throughout his time there, which proved to be extremely popular amongst the boys with even some random girl siblings that also joined in at times.

Ivan’s teaching journey began in 1980 in South Africa, where he specialised in woodwork, welding and metalwork and gained also teaching experience on Tertiary level. His deep understanding of design and creation, along with his proficiency in selecting tools and materials, makes him an invaluable resource for his students. Ivan’s passion for craftsmanship and his wealth of experience are now enriching the learning experiences at Wooburn Craft School.