Word: nakashima
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...matter the wood's emotional state, Nakashima's furniture is distinguished by a tension between naturally shaped slabs of wood and meticulously worked support elements. While the base of a dining table may be crisply machined, Nakashima lets the natural "free edge" of the top planks determine the contour of the piece, instead of sawing a geometrical line...
...number of influences glow in Nakashima's work. His admiration for New England rustic is evident in slab coffee tables that are halved cherry and walnut logs. He interprets Shaker design in a 10-ft.-long bench made from a single plank of black walnut set with a spidery backrest of hickory spindles. But his genius is essentially Oriental, akin to that of Zen rock gardening and Oriental flower arranging. Nakashima selects the exact natural object needed to serve a particular purpose. For a recent table, he used an 8-ft. cross section of redwood root. The wild energy...
There is nothing precious in either Nakashima's designs or his workshop. He employs ten assistant craftsmen and uses some power tools to do the rough work. The oil finish of his furniture merely needs to be cleaned with a wet cloth. "We recommend hard use," says Nakashima. "A wood surface that is without a scratch or mar is kind of distressing. It shows no life and has no time value." His business approach is equally straightforward. "I wanted," he says, "to make furniture out of real wood without it costing that much more than you would...
With his concern for traditional workmanship and his devotion to organic simplicity, Nakashima tends to be disdainful of many of the latest generation of craftspeople. "They're trying to be Picassos," he says. "They've got all the ego and glitz and high gloss of modern art. But crafts don't need that. | They can stand up by themselves...
...nearly a half-century, distinguished woodworker George Nakashima has produced powerfully understated furniture for a loyal group of clients...