Phillip Lloyd Powell, Unique Carved Desk, USA

About the Item

This organic executive desk, a custom commission for a private collector, is one of the best examples of Powell’s affinity for natural wood and his mastery in creating unique works that highlight wood’s inconsistencies rather than masking them. The substantial live-edge figured walnut desk top features four ebony butterflies and an subtle yet elegant crest, also live-edge. A small pencil drawer sits between two pedestal cabinets. The two-door compartment on the left hand side conceals four adjustable shelves, while the right hand side cabinet opens to reveal two drawers and a large file drawer. Each of the three doors is an exquisite collage of live-edge walnut planks that have been chip-carved by hand to further draw out the rhythm of the wood’s grain. Each are held together with hand-hammered iron round head nails. This exceptional unique desk has all of the hallmarks of the American craft resurgence of the mid-1960s which Powell was instrumental in invigorating – small studio production, a disavowal of prefabrication, and reverence for materials.

Creator:
Phillip Lloyd Powell (Artist)
Dimensions:
Height: 34 in (86.36 cm)Width: 91 in (231.14 cm)Depth: 30 in (76.2 cm)
Materials and Techniques:
Ebony,Iron,Walnut
Place of Origin:
United States
Period:
1960-1969
Date of Manufacture:
1965
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use.
Seller Location:
New York, NY
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU800823305562

Shop All Phillip Lloyd Powell

Phillip Lloyd Powell

An American woodworker known for a wide range of furniture that is sensuous, sculptural and imbued with character, Phillip Lloyd Powell is an iconic figure in design. His organic style transcended the conventions of popular mid-century modern furniture and is best reflected in the vintage cabinets and tables for which he is renowned.

“I am an artist working with furniture,” Powell once said. But the self-taught furniture maker wore a number of different hats throughout his lifetime. He crafted handmade furniture as a teenager at his boyhood home and went on to study engineering at what is now Drexel University. Powell served in the Army Air Corps during World War II, and, on his return, he established his first showroom in New Hope, in his home state of Pennsylvania, stocking furniture from Knoll, Herman Miller and Isamu Noguchi.

In New Hope, Powell encountered fellow furniture designers Paul Evans and George Nakashima. The latter, a master woodworker who preferred a personal approach to design over industrial methods and materials, encouraged Powell to concentrate on making his own furniture. When Powell did so, he’d experiment with Nakashima’s unused stock of wood, drawing on natural world forms for seating and shapely coffee tables.

Evans, who moved to New Hope in 1955, was invited to share Powell’s studio space. Powell’s furniture design practice really took off and a collaboration with Evans put into motion the 1960s American Studio Craft Movement, which came to include furniture designers Wharton Esherick and Sam Maloof. The decade-long partnership between Evans and Powell yielded stone-topped tables, walnut chests with sculptured metal exteriors and more.

Powell was inspired by Evans’s artistry as a jewelry designer — he was a skilled welder whose Cityscape pieces are milestones of brutalism. Powell, in turn, encouraged him to turn his sculptures into furniture. Like Evans, Powell incorporated a range of materials into his work, rendering the interiors of his hand-carved cabinets alluring and distinctive with applications of silver leaf and fabrics.

The sinewy arms of Powell’s famous New Hope lounge chair are representative of his broad expertise with wood and his ability to make graceful yet functional furniture. He worked slowly, and the influence of the natural world remained a driving force in his designs. Powell produced approximately 1,000 pieces while he lived and worked in New Hope until his death in 2008.

Find vintage Phillip Lloyd Powell furniture on 1stDibs.