Lot 194: J. B. BLUNK

Unique low table

16 x 59 x 36 in. (40.6 x 149.9 x 91.4 cm.)

Buckeye burl.

ca. 1985

Todd Merrill and Julie V. Iovine, eds., Modern Americana: Studio Furniture from High Craft to High Glam, New York, 2008, illustrated p. 40

Estate of the artist; Sotheby’s, Important 20th Century Design, June 19, 2007, Lot 139

This low dining table was commissioned in the mid-1980s by a Japanese client from California artist J.B. Blunk. Given the irregularities of burl, the client became concerned about the table's practicality. Blunk produced for him a second example in rosewood and kept the present lot in his personal collection. Carved by hand and by chainsaw from a single piece of buckeye burl, the table is evidence of Blunk's superior woodworking abilities in service to the natural characteristics of the wood.