George Nakashima Walnut and Poplar "New Chair" Rocker, USA, 1978
View Similar Items
George Nakashima Walnut and Poplar "New Chair" Rocker, USA, 1978
About the Item
- Creator:George Nakashima (Workshop/Studio)
- Dimensions:Height: 36 in (91.44 cm)Width: 25 in (63.5 cm)Depth: 29 in (73.66 cm)Seat Height: 16 in (40.64 cm)
- Materials and Techniques:Poplar,Walnut
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1978
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:New York, NY
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU804811959641
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.
- George Nakashima Music StandBy George NakashimaLocated in New York, NYStunning burl walnut music stand by George Nakashima. Signed and dated 1978. Literature: Derek E. Ostergard, George Nakashima: Full Circle, exh. cat., American Craft Museum, New York, 1989, p. 176 (for a related example) Mira Nakashima, Nature Form & Spirit: The Life and Legacy of George Nakashima, New York, 2003, p. 113 Robert Aibel...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Music Stands
MaterialsWood, Burl
$69,300 - Rocking Chair by CassinaBy Cassina, Gio PontiLocated in New York, NYWalnut Rocking Chair in the style of Gio Ponti, manufactured by Cassina. Italy, 1960s. Newly reupholstered with original channeled style cushion.Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Rocking Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Walnut
$22,000 - Double Rocking Chair by Sam MaloofBy Sam MaloofLocated in New York, NYDouble rocking chair by Sam Maloof, circa 1980's signed Sam Maloof f.A.C.C./©, dated 1988 and numbered No. 9. Literature Jo Lauria, Craft in America: ...Category
Vintage 1980s American Modern Rocking Chairs
MaterialsWood, Walnut
- Live Edge Coffee Table by George NakashimaBy George NakashimaLocated in New York, NYPhenomenal live edge coffee table by George Nakashima. circa 1960s with an organic walnut burl flow. Approximate overall dimensions: 58"W x 33.5"D x 13"H.Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
MaterialsWalnut
- American Studio Crafts Movement Walnut Two-Drawer Stand, USA 1960sLocated in New York, NYThis piece although unidentified shows signs of the great makers of the period. Unable to determine if it is by the likes of Wendell Castle, Sam Maloof or Wharton Esherick it clearly...Category
Vintage 1960s American Commodes and Chests of Drawers
MaterialsWalnut
- Hand-Carved Walnut Sculpture of Dancers by John Begg, USA, 1950sLocated in New York, NYA wonderfully hand-carved block sculpture of a couple dancing. The sculpture is reminiscent of folk carving and WPA styles.Category
Vintage 1950s American Sculptures
MaterialsWalnut
- George Nakashima Slab-Arm RockerBy George NakashimaLocated in West Palm Beach, FLA fine example of this form. The family requested an extra wide slab -arm. Signed with the clients name.Category
Vintage 1960s American Rocking Chairs
MaterialsWood
- George Nakashima 'New' Dining Chairs in Walnut and HickoryBy George Nakashima, George Nakashima StudioLocated in Waalwijk, NLGeorge Nakashima, ‘New’ dining chairs, American black walnut, hickory, United States, 1975 With regard to its essential form, material use, and woodwork, this ‘New’ dining chair is...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsHickory, Walnut
- RB Rocking Chair, Modern Woodsport Rocker Handcrafted in WalnutBy WOODSPORTLocated in St. Paul, MNWoodsport RB rocking chair. Named after the running bond pattern in which bricks are laid. Individual pieces are laced together with high grade polyester rope, creating a soft surfac...Category
2010s American Modern Rocking Chairs
MaterialsWood
- Antique Eastlake Victorian Carved Walnut Platform Rocker Rocking ChairLocated in Philadelphia, PAAntique Eastlake Victorian Carved Walnut Platform Rocker Rocking Chair. Item features Rolling casters, solid wood frame, beautiful wood grain, nicely c...Category
Antique 19th Century Victorian Rocking Chairs
MaterialsWalnut
- Antique Victorian Walnut and Cane Carved Rocker Rocking Chair Queen Anne LegsLocated in Philadelphia, PAAntique Victorian Walnut and Cane Carved Rocker Rocking Chair Queen Anne Legs. Circa Early 1900s. Measurements: 35.5" H x 24.5" W x 28.5" D x 15" Seat he...Category
Antique Early 1900s Victorian Rocking Chairs
MaterialsCane, Walnut
- Antique Rocking Chair, English, Walnut, Armchair, Rocker, Victorian, Circa 1880Located in Hele, Devon, GBThis is an antique rocking chair. An English, walnut framed armchair rocker, dating to the late Victorian period, circa 1880. Relax and soothe the day...Category
Antique Late 19th Century British Late Victorian Rocking Chairs
MaterialsTextile, Walnut