At first it wasn’t easy. Many orders were Nakashima-Yarnallalsooverseestheday-to-day Gabellini,anarchitectinNewYorkCitywhohas
cancelled. Clients insisted on the George operationsofabusywoodworkingstudio.Itis worked with Nakashima-Yarnall on several
Nakashima name. Yet Nakashima-Yarnall appropriately nestled amidst trees, sprawling projects.“Shetakesdeadtreesandsawsthemup
persisted,evenwhenitwassometimesdifficult throughseveralbuildingsalongAquetongRoad. andputsthembackintouse.Thetreeasmaterial
forhertograspthatshewasnowincharge.“I Onewinterday,Nakashima-Yarnallcrunched hasasecondlife.”Gabellinicomparedhercreations
rememberIwasannoyedatmymother,”she throughday-oldsnowtothebuildingsshehas toaluxurycar–somethingthatisadmiredforboth
recalled. “She wanted me to sign ‘George knownsincechildhood.Shewalkedthroughthe itsbeautyandpurpose.“Itisthesamewayyoulook
Nakashima.’ I said to her, ‘My name isn’t warehouses of stored wood, one building at a Porsche or Ferrari and its design and
George,remember?’Itwashardformetoaccept spanning180feetlongand45feetwide,filled performanceandcharacter–youalsolookathow
inthebeginning.” withhundred-poundslabs.Shevisitedthemain a table or chair performs and functions,” he
shop, where sawdust blankets the floor. She continued. “At the same time her work has
Yetiftentative,shewasalsodetermined.Soshe
steppedintothefinishingroom,whereeach undiminishedbeautyandproportion.It’shighly
keptworking.Sheattractednewclientsand
pieceismassagedwithoilfortwoweeks.She complexasacraftanddiscipline.”
producedshowsofoldandnewworksingalleries
walkedintoherstudio,whereeachpiecebegins
spanning from New York to California. She
withapencilandapieceofpaper.
Afterworkingalongsideherfatherfor20years,
designed and constructed the Nakashima Nakashima-Yarnall has now worked without
Memorial Reading Room at the Michener Nakashima-Yarnallnowhasherowncatalogof himfornearly20more.Shehassaltandpepper
MuseuminDoylestown.Shehadsoloshowsof works, a line she calls Keisho, meaning hairnow.Shehashadtwohipreplacements.
hernewworksandauthoredabook,Nature, continuation.Asthenamesuggests,sheworks Shehasbeenshepherdingherslabsofwoodfor
FormandSpirit:TheLifeandLegacyofGeorge inthetraditionofherfather,yetaddsherown decades.Thewomanwhowasonceapioneeras
Nakashima.Andshehashelpedcarryononeof interpretations.“Idon’tfeeltheauthorityor a young mother and woodworker remains a
herfather’sgreatestprojects:TheNakashima inspirationtodosomethingtotallyradicallyoff pioneer,nowasagrandmotheroffiveanda
FoundationforPeace. the wall,” she said. “There’s certainly a woodworker.Andshestillgetspleasurefromit.
techniqueofwoodworkingI’mfamiliarwith.I
In1986,GeorgeNakashimafashionedagiantof
wanttopushthattechniqueasmuchasIcan.”
“Youdodeveloparesponsibilityandinvestment
atable–12feetlongand12feetwide,weighing
WhileNakashima-Yarnallismodestbynature,
ineachpiece,”shesaid.“Likewithmykids.I
nearlyoneton–toserveasasymbolforpeace.
hertalentisclearlyadmiredbythosefamiliar
broughtthemup,theywentofftocollege,and
ItwasinstalledattheCathedralofSaintJohn
withherwork.
nowthey’retheirownpeople.It’sthesamewith
theDivineinNewYorkCity.Theplanwasto furniture.Ithasanewlifewithsomeoneelse.
make a peace table for each of the seven “Shecertainlyisbeingrecognizedinherownright, Andifthepieceisappreciatedandenjoyed,
N
continents.“It’sDad’sdream,”saidNakashima- there’snoquestionaboutit,”saidBruceKatsiff, I’mhappy.”
A
M
Yarnall.“Hefeltwewouldbeclosertoworld directorandCEOoftheMichenerMuseum.“She
O
peaceifwehadsomewheretogatherandtalk.” isnotrejectingherfather’swork.Iseeitasa
Forquestionsaboutfurnitureorastudiotour,
W
AfterNakashimadied,itfelltohisdaughterto transitionoranevolution,butshehasevolveditto
contact:GeorgeNakashimaWoodworker,S.A.,
T
Y
continue. She oversaw the installation of a thenextstep,thenextgeneration.”
1847AquetongRoad,NewHope,Pa.Tel:(215)
N
U
secondpeacetableinMoscow,Russia,anda
862-2272,www.nakashimawoodworker.com.
O
thirdinAuroville,India.Sheisnowworkingon
“Whatshedoeswithwoodbordersontheouter
C
a fourth table for the Desmond Tutu Peace
limitsofplausibilityinthewaysheusesthe
StorybyLaurenEckstein
K
S
C
CenterinCapeTown,SouthAfrica.
medium for self-expression,” said Michael
B
U
3
8
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