Container with cover

Chase was a practicing neurosurgeon who began turning wood in the early 1970s. Shortly thereafter, he became interested in ornamental turning and began to study a lathe-carving technique called Rose Engine. Chase collaborates with a tool and die maker to create his own tools and lathe fixtures, and uses a Holtzapffel ornamental turning lathe, which allow him to create extremely detailed designs on a small scale. Since 1974, Chase has focused on creating boxes. In the late 1990s, Chase turned to jade, quartz, and precious metals as the primary materials for his boxes, but in 2004 he returned to exotic woods, once again creating his prized multi-colored works. Each of these boxes takes a minimum of fifty hours to complete.