Brendan Reilly began his fascination with machines of all kinds at an early age. His understanding of clockwork mechanisms came after several alarm clocks met their ends in his hands. This fascination led him to study physics at the University of Waterloo, graduating in 1975.

He first realized the potential of wooden clockworks after reading a magazine article in 1979. Within a few weeks, he had designed and built his first clock. It was a success in that it actually worked, and it inspired him to build his first limited edition of six clocks in 1980. These early clocks sold within a few months. Soon he had his own workshop and was turning out many different designs. This has continued to the present day.

He learned the art of woodworking through his clock making and has no formal training in the field.

Brendan builds most of his designs as limited editions. When he has created a suitable design, he decides how many to make. It could be as few as 6 or as many as 24. Then he starts to work on each part, making all of the required number. Once every part is complete, the clocks are assembled and sold. The design will never be repeated.

Lately, Brendan has expanded into a new and exciting field. He has now completed two commissioned wooden clockwork sculptures. These very large works, with wheels as large as three feet across, have been designed specifically for their surroundings, and they are one of a kind works. Each one incorporates ideas never before used, such as the temperature compensated horizontal compound pendulum. Brendan is very excited about the potential of this field, and he has lots of ideas he’d like to see realized.