Dennis, ‘my guru’
Sometimes it is difficult to pin-point a specific point, moment or person to identify as having the biggest influence on your creative ideas and ultimately the work you produce. In my columns in Reclaim, I have explained how I have drawn influences from everything from iconic chair designs to David Bowie.
However, there is without doubt a single person who is responsible for not only the quality of the work I produce, but also why I love doing it.
Dennis Gilligan was my mentor, co-worker and friend and it is with a heavy heart that this colourful character passed away at the age of 88 a few months ago. First, a bit of background on Dennis. I first met him in 2014 when he walked past the workshop and he introduced himself as 'a retired upholsterer'.
Dennis left school at 14 to start working as an upholsterer while he also was a promising wrestler having followed in the footsteps of his brother, Stan. Dennis started wrestling when he was 20 years old, while training at the YMCA gym, which he still used up until he passed away in June 2019. He was three-time British Bantamweight champion, represented England in the 1968 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Cardiff and took part at the World Expo 1967 in Canada.
During his full-time career as an upholsterer, he would start working at 7am and finish at 4pm before heading to the gym to hone his wrestling career. Dennis was diligent, hardworking and applied himself to whatever task he undertook. I called him 'my guru', for he was able to teach me things that money cannot buy.
When I started my business, I wanted to work on vintage cocktail chairs from the 1950s however, I needed to know the correct processes and techniques..
I feel that chairs from this period deserve to be restored sympathetically to how they were produced in their original workshop. At the time it was difficult to find a course where I could learn these techniques because, largely speaking, people were mostly interested in learning modern upholstery processes.
Traditional upholstery methods are often more costly and time consuming than modern techniques, however the finished quality of traditionally finished pieces, in my opinion, justifies the extra work, so I knew this is what I wanted to achieve. Dennis was the one who could show me these techniques, a good example being hand stitching. I was lucky enough to have one-on-one training with someone who had many years of experience of it.
He drove me on and kept me interested in learning and was always coming up with new creative ideas. From that point on, whenever I needed any help, guidance or information, I would go to him.
He started to come to my studio twice a week at four hours a time and if I needed help at a weekend I would go and pick him up on a Saturday or a Sunday and we'd work while listening to Glenn Miller and Frank Sinatra. In the week after his death, I produced a Parker Knoll that I consider to be the best chair I have ever made, and I'd like to think that was dedicated to Dennis. I truly believe that had I not met him, I would not be enjoying upholstery as much as I am today. He taught me how therapeutic it can be to build chairs and when times were tough, he has inspired me to keep going.
Dennis accelerated my career. You cannot pay for what knowledge he gave me, which is why he is dearly missed. Aside from the memories and techniques, he will always have a legacy in my workshop. Whenever he finished a day's work, Dennis would hang up his apron. He's now hung it up for the last time, but it is still there hanging in my workshop and it will always be as a testament to the person who had the biggest influence on my upholstery career.
Photo credits: Daniel Walmsley and historic pictures supplied by Dennis Gilligan’s family
Article written for Reclaim magazine 2019