Collecting Design: George Nakashima

Collecting Design: George Nakashima with host Daniella Ohad.

Produced in association with Rago Auctions and The New York School of Interior Design, this short form documentary features some of the world's leading Nakashima experts - dealers, curators, collectors, scholars, and designers - who provide insight into Nakashima's work and current market and tell fascinating 'behind-the-scenes' stories.

Among those featured: designer Mira Nakashima, auctioneer David Rago, collector Phyllis Lifschutz, dealer Robert Aibel, curator and former Sotheby’s department head James Zemaitis, scholar Derek Ostergard and interior designers Russell Piccione and Michael Gruber.

[biddy]

Met Mr Nakashima in the early 1990s in New Hope. As a woodworker I was amazed by the wood he had. I have loved wood ever since I watched my great grandfather make cabinets in the early 1950s.

[jonathanmangold]

I've admired his work for decades. This free-edge stuff you see everywhere now was Nakishima's idea from years ago.

[thomastieffenbacherdocsava]

Nakashima-san tihen utskushi desu! The Japanese used wood and bamboo to build. The philosophies developed around the beauty of natures perfect imperfection. The architect who loved nature let it dictate rather than put his will upon the material. I've always appreciated my experiences in Japan and how it changed this Chicago boy. I'm making organic, functional, and hopefully good design. Thankyou Nakashima-san!

[DOUGALUS]

Thank you for showing this documentary. George was a one in a lifetime visionary and we are appreciative that his vision and craft has been documented for all of us to appreciate.

[lwazihlophe]

The beauty of YouTube is that for years later beautiful content like this, hwlps people like me, discover artist Nakashima who were absolutely breath taking and are worth knowing and discovering. Thank you foe creating this documentary.

[grandmarnier]

I struggle, cringe even when they are trying to give worth or a price to the pieces. You just can’t do that with art. You never know who is in the audience and how it will speak to someone. The value is much more than simply the price. Emotion or experience is found in the person. Priceless.

[marklingerfelt]

I was left my late parents formal dining and living room furnature.
All was Nakiashima.
They were quite collecters of his furniture.

[appidydafoo]

Thank you so much for this wonderful documentary

[JAMES-dvns]

I think George Nakashima wouldn’t want his furniture to be slobbered by rich snobs and be used by everyone

[spenserclarke]

I have always held the same principle to trees, even before coming across Nakashima. Inf fact, my woodworking principles are to avoid any and all waste as possible, by a multi step process. I cut timber into the main sizes I need, with a slight adjustment to make use of the 'waste' pieces, whereby I then make pen blanks, and strips with thinner pieces for laminating together, segmenting pen blanks, or using to make pin striping in larger pieces of wood. I try to make sure all waste is as useless as possible.

[thomaskirkpatrick]

I hate to hear people that would be disgusted by the site of a dusty woodshop talk about a man's life work.

[cristianm]

I've stumble upon a Nakashima piece at an estate sale. By luck the owners of the house didn't quite know what they had. $500 usd was all I spent, and to this day-the night stands i found remain in my possession. I'm so glad i rejected offers of $900 and $3000.

[inmanphotography]

I thought he was born in Spokane, WA not Seattle...? anyone?

[elememelon]

I believe in the its not a collection its a lifestyle a lot

[harperwelch]

This work requires a lot of hand labor and uses rare and expensive woods. We think art is expensive. Yes it is. This art isn’t easy to do and isn’t cheap to make or to buy.

[barbarag]

How fucking ironic the owners of his pieces are the very people who drove up prices and keep to them selves

[carlosnabor]

And as to her accent, have you ever been with and interesting multi-lingual Filipino.

[johndoe]

NO DOUBT THAT NAKASHIMA FURNITURE WAS BEAUTIFUL BUT ALL THIS INTELECTUAL TALK ABOUT HIS WORK WAS NOT HIS INTENT, HIS WORK WAS BY SPIRITUAL MEAN OF THE EAST, NOT EGOTISTICAL SELF STROKING OF THE WELL TO DO IN THE WESTERN WORLD . THIS WHY THE PRICES ARE SO HIGH .

[allenhanford]

George Nakashima used to say he'd ask the wood what it wanted to be. Did it ever say "I want to be a tree again"?

[harperwelch]

We’re spoiled by furniture made in boxes we assemble or made in third world countries. At the time of creation these pieces weren’t cheap, at all. Not affordable for everyone. FL Wright wanted his homes to be for everyone, they were very expensive and not available to everyone.