George Nakashima and boards, New Hope, PA, 1969
photograph by John Loengard for TIME, Inc.
George Nakashima (1905-1990) made chairs, tables and cabinets from boards he bought all over the world. Before we met, I had not known that people bid for slices of rare trees cut down anywhere in the world. Nakashima showed me pieces he stored in his warehouse. It was a time of Zen, flower power and Woodstock, and I wanted to indicate that the craft of this craftsman was not predictable. It involved both exquisite selection and the use of a buzz saw.
