Will Matthysen is part of a dying profession. He's a clockmaker. Tinkering away in his workshop near Warrandyte, Victoria he builds unique and bespoke clocks.
"It's a skill which I think is dying, which is fading," Matthysen says. "I'm very fortunate to be probably at the tail end of actually receiving that knowledge and that technique."
Matthysen's passion for clocks comes from a love of building things during his childhood. Tinkering away in his father's workshop Matthysen credits his dad with inspiring his love for making things.
"He was... in many ways quite inspirational, he was quite a good maker of things and he was very handy and quite resourceful," he says.
"I would take clocks apart at home and figure out, you know, why they weren't working, and then put them back together again."
"I'd invariably end up with a handful of bits that I didn't know what to do with."
Despite having a love for making things - Matthysen went to university and forged a career as an architect - but after a decade in architecture he eventually found his way back to clockmaking and has now been making clocks full time for around 20 years.
During that time, Matthysen says he's built more than 170 clocks - he knows this because each of his clocks is individually numbered. But with each clock taking many days, weeks, and even months of work he makes less than 10 clocks per year.
Matthysen builds his clocks predominately out of Australian hardwood timber - carefully selecting the right combination and colours of timber to achieve the design and function he's after. And his contemporary designs look unlike many other clocks you might find.
But Matthysen hopes people will one day rediscover the same passion and dedication he has for clockmaking.
"I think there’ll always be a place for clocks," he says. "As long as there are people who are interested in clocks, and enjoy having them in their homes... that'll be great"
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