Elementa Laudis Jan Katewicz

Marquetry at the scale of a wall

I make contemporary marquetry in my studio in Sheffield. I cut and assemble every element by hand from natural veneer and then dye it myself. It is a craft that has almost disappeared in Britain and in the world, and only a handful of people still work it at this scale.

Jan Katewicz
Innerysm: Humble, marquetry in walnut, maple and zebrano veneer on MDF, 172.5 by 108 cm, 2024

Selected work

Every piece is one of a kind

I choose, cut, dye and lay every veneer by hand, so no panel can ever be repeated. Two pieces of wood never carry the same grain, and that is the whole appeal of working this way.

Innerysm Humble

Innerysm: Humble

Marquetry in walnut, maple and zebrano veneer on MDF
172.5 × 108 cm · 2024

Available, view details
Innerysm Archetypes

Innerysm: Archetypes

Marquetry in walnut, sycamore and oak veneer on MDF
159.5 × 117 cm · 2024

Available, view details
Innerysm Inner Strength

Innerysm: Inner Strength

Marquetry in walnut and sycamore veneer on MDF
158.5 × 99.5 cm · 2024

Available, view details
Innerysm Intrinsic Motivation

Innerysm: Intrinsic Motivation

Marquetry in walnut, sapele pommelé, camphor, birch and sycamore veneer on MDF
152.5 × 112 cm · 2024

Available, view details
Innerysm Breath

Innerysm: Breath

Marquetry in walnut, ash and eucalyptus veneer on MDF
124.5 × 104 cm · 2024

Available, view details
Now Harmony

Now: Harmony

Marquetry in chestnut veneer on plywood
62 × 95.5 cm · 2025

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Now Chaos

Now: Chaos

Marquetry in chestnut veneer on plywood
62 × 103 cm · 2025

Available, view details

Available works

Acquire a piece

My prices are the same wherever you find the work, whether that is the studio, a fair or this page. Everything arrives with a signed certificate of authenticity. I arrange delivery within the UK myself, and I will quote for international shipping if you ask.

If you would rather talk first, or come and see a piece in the studio before you decide, please write to me. Visitors are welcome by appointment, and I am happy to split payment over two or three instalments at no extra cost.

Full terms, including your right to change your mind within fourteen days, are on the buying, delivery and returns page.

About

Jan Katewicz

I was born in Warsaw in 1987 and I live and work in Sheffield. I have been a financial adviser for fourteen years and I still am, which surprises people once they have stood in front of one of the panels. What changed was a cycling accident that put me in hospital and gave me six months to think about what I actually wanted to make. During that time I came across veneer, which is wood sliced thin enough that you can see everything the tree went through, and I started cutting.

The work I make now brings a very old craft together with the kind of ideas you would usually find in contemporary abstract painting. My Innerysm series is about inner strength, self discovery, and the layers of motivation we tend not to look at directly. I build those ideas out of veneer that I cut and dye myself, in patterns that some people associate with mandalas, fractals and the muqarnas vaults of Islamic architecture.

Most marquetry is the size of a jewellery box. Mine is the size of a wall, which is part of the point. Marquetry appears on the Heritage Crafts Red List of Endangered Crafts, only a handful of people in the UK still practise it, and almost nobody works it at this scale. My work has found its way into private collections in five countries.

Studio visits and commissions

Jan Katewicz
Elementa Laudis studio, Sheffield

Exhibitions and fairs

Where to see the work

  • 16 to 18 Oct 2026

    Great Northern Contemporary Craft FairVictoria Baths, Manchester, with a preview evening on 15 October. I will be hand cutting veneer at the stand through the weekend.

  • 27 to 29 Nov 2026

    Studio ExhibitionElementa Laudis, Sheffield, opening with a preview evening on Friday 27 November

  • 28 to 29 Nov 2026

    GNCCF Online, Gift EditionOnline

  • May 2025

    Open Up SheffieldI opened the studio for the weekend so people could see the Innerysm series and watch how marquetry is actually done

  • Nov 2024

    Group ExhibitionThe Holy Art Gallery, London, showing two works in a curated group show

  • Aug 2024

    Innerysm, solo exhibitionElementa Laudis, Sheffield, which was also the opening of the studio

  • Ongoing

    Virtual open studioI film the making of each work and put it on YouTube, so anyone can look over my shoulder

Enquiries

Get in touch

Whether it is about buying a piece, commissioning something, gallery representation, press or a visit to the studio, please write to me directly. I answer every message myself.

Studio letter

New work, first

A few times a year I send out new pieces before they go public, along with exhibition dates and the occasional note from the workbench. Nothing more often than that.

Elementa Laudis
Unit 16, Gordon Works Complex, Valley Rd, Sheffield, S8 9FT
Visits by appointment. elementa.laudis@gmail.com