Furniture as Sculpture: Wharton Esherick’s Inspired Design

New York | December 2016

Originally trained as a painter in Philadelphia, Wharton Esherick abandoned the medium for woodworking in the 1920s and began creating unique sculptural furniture. In this exclusive preview of the forthcoming documentary, 'I Am Known As An Artist: The Wharton Esherick Story,' Geoffrey Berwind, grandson of Nat and Rose Rubinson, discusses his grandparents’ vivacious, artistic sensibility and their 30-year friendship with the artist. Fueled by a deep appreciation for Esherick’s vision and the high quality of his work, the Rubinsons commissioned the designer to create a variety of furnishings for their home beginning in the early 1950s, a selection of which are presented in Sotheby’s Important Design sale on 14 December in New York. Over the course of their long patronage, the couple ardently promoted Esherick’s work and amassed the most impressive collection of his furniture, woodcuts and sculpture in private hands.

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