Conoid Desk by George Nakashima
View Similar Items
Conoid Desk by George Nakashima
About the Item
- Creator:George Nakashima (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 28.5 in (72.39 cm)Width: 59 in (149.86 cm)Depth: 29 in (73.66 cm)
- Style:American Craftsman (In the Style Of)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1970s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Sagaponack, NY
- Reference Number:Seller: 1298.0011stDibs: LU89031019242
George Nakashima
A master woodworker and M.I.T.-trained architect, George Nakashima was the leading light of the American Studio furniture movement. Along with Wharton Esherick, Sam Maloof and Wendell Castle, Nakashima was an artisan who disdained industrial methods and materials in favor of a personal, craft-based approach to the design. What sets Nakashima apart is the poetic style of his work, his reverence for wood and the belief that his furniture could evince — as he put it in the title of his 1981 memoir — The Soul of a Tree.
Born in Spokane, Washington, to Japanese immigrants, Nakashima traveled widely after college, working and studying in Paris, Japan and India, and at every stop he absorbed both modernist and traditional design influences. The turning point in Nakashima’s career development came in the United States in 1942, when he was placed in an internment camp for Asian-Americans in Idaho. There, Nakashima met a master woodcarver who tutored him in Japanese crafting techniques. A former employer won Nakashima’s release and brought him to bucolic New Hope, Pennsylvania, where Nakashima set up a studio and worked for the rest of his life.
Nakashima’s singular aesthetic is best captured in his custom-made tables and benches — pieces that show off the grain, burls and whorls in a plank of wood. He left the “free edge,” or natural contour, of the slab un-planed, and reinforced fissures in the wood with “butterfly” joints. Almost all Nakashima seating pieces have smooth, milled edges. Nakashima also contracted with large-scale manufacturers to produce carefully supervised editions of his designs. Knoll has offered his Straight chair — a modern take on the spindle-backed Windsor chair — since 1946; the now-defunct firm Widdicomb-Mueller issued the Shaker-inspired Origins collection in the 1950s.
Nelson Rockefeller in 1973 gave Nakashima his single largest commission: a 200-piece suite for his suburban New York estate. Today, Nakashima furniture is collected by both the staid and the fashionable: his work sits in the collections of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Smithsonian Institution, as well as in the homes of Steven Spielberg, Brad Pitt, Diane von Furstenberg and the late Steve Jobs.
- 1960s Walnut Stool by George NakashimaBy George NakashimaLocated in Sagaponack, NYA walnut barstool designed by American Craftsman Master George Nakashima with hand-hewn spindles supporting a thin backrest, a shaped seat on four spl...Category
Vintage 1960s American American Craftsman Stools
MaterialsWalnut
- Walnut Nakashima Headboard by George Nakashima for George Nakashima StudioBy George Nakashima, George Nakashima StudioLocated in Sagaponack, NYA king sized solid walnut headboard. Superb craftsmanship and beautifully executed design.Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Beds and Bed Frames
MaterialsWalnut
- Writing Desk by George NelsonBy George Nelson, Herman MillerLocated in Sagaponack, NYA single pedestal writing desk by George Nelson for Herman Miller with a built-in pivoting lamp. Lamp is 18" H.Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsSteel
- 1940s Straight Chair by George NakashimaBy Knoll, George NakashimaLocated in Sagaponack, NYAn early production straight chair with spindles and a shaped seat on four splayed, tapered dowel legs.Category
Vintage 1940s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsHickory
$7,200 / item - Roll Top Writing Desk by Edward WormleyBy Dunbar Furniture, Edward WormleyLocated in Sagaponack, NYA stately and elegant rosewood and mahogany campaign desk having three drawers and two rosewood roll-top compartments flanking a central writing surface with a flip-down back splash,...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsBrass
- Drop Leaf Executive Desk by Willy BeckBy Willy Beck, Ejner Larsen, Aksel Bender MadsenLocated in Sagaponack, NYA rectangular teak executive desk with a demi-lune drop leaf.Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsTeak
- 1970s Live Edge Walnut Waterfall Desk Inspiration George NakashimaBy George NakashimaLocated in Chula Vista, CACustom Desk in natural Walnut wood, Live edge Waterfall Form, inspiration George Nakashima. Desk 55.75 w x 34 d x 28.25 tall, Knee clearance 26 tal...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsWalnut
- Nakashima Style Slab DeskBy George NakashimaLocated in Brooklyn, NYMid-Century Modern style desk with decorative leaf handles and large tree slab top. (Please confirm item location - NY or NJ - with dealer).Category
Vintage 1960s Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsWalnut
$2,450 Sale Price30% Off - George Nakashima Turned Wood Dowel Shape Leg Single Pedestal Small Desk MintBy George NakashimaLocated in Rockaway, NJGeorge Nakashima turned wood dowel shape leg single pedestal small desk mint with documents.Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsWalnut
- Beautiful live Edge Cherry Desk - In The Manner of George NakashimaLocated in Peekskill, NYIf I had a place in my own home I would be keeping this desk. The legs are turn of-the-century industrial Iron. The original paint patina was untouched to offset the perfectly finish...Category
Early 20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsCherry
- Rare Live Edge Chestnut Long Desk, in the Manner of George NakashimaLocated in Peekskill, NYIf I had a place in my own home I would be keeping this desk. The 3 leg set are turn of-the-century industrial Iron. The original paint patina was untouched to offset the perfectly f...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsHardwood
- George III Partners DeskLocated in Hudson, NYGeorge III partners desk. Red leather and gilded trim top with bronze mounts. Four drawers on one side five drawers on the other.Category
Antique Early 19th Century British Desks and Writing Tables
$12,500