GEORGE NAKASHIMA | AN IMPORTANT "CONOID" DINING TABLE

Commissioned directly from the artist by Reverend Thomas W. Phelan, Troy, New York

Estate of Reverend Thomas W. Phelan, Troy, New York

Skinner, Boston, June 24, 2006, lot 253

Acquired from the above by the present owner

Mira Nakashima, Nature, Form, & Spirit: The Life and Legacy of George Nakashima, New York, 2003, p. 174 (for a related model) 

David Cathers, ''Attracted to Opposites,'' American Bungalow, Summer 2007, p. 39 (for the present lot illustrated)

This lot is offered together with a copy of George Nakashima's book, Soul of a Tree, inscribed by the author to the original owner of the present lot, Reverend Thomas W. Phelan, and with a copy of the original order card.

The present dining table is an incredibly rare and superlative example of George Nakashima’s use of English oak burl. Nakashima allowed himself to be guided by the natural figuring and free edges of the wood slabs in his extensive collection to inform the way he could give them new life as furniture. For dining tables, he commonly used walnut, “book-matching” a slab so that the wood’s figuring was mirrored on both sides of the tabletop. The sublime English oak burl slab of the present dining table must have inspired him greatly. It is distinguished by its dramatic, undulating free-form edges and textured burls, which imbue the table with strong dynamism. Its surface is richly figured with warm variegated amber tones, accented with occasional blond striations. The wood’s natural fissures are accented by butterfly keys, adding graphic visual interest to an otherwise overwhelmingly organic form. The single slab tabletop is remarkably thick, imparting the work with striking sculptural presence. The table is further enriched by its provenance: it was commissioned directly from Nakashima by Reverend Thomas W. Phelan of Troy, New York, who was also a friend of the artist.