New Maker at OEN Shop – Wooden Vessels and Trays by Toru Sugimura

Our concept of stocking handmade objects in the store can be a double edged sword at times. On one hand it’s great to have unique works that people can own and cherish, but actually when selling online each one has to be photographed which can take a lot of time to prepare. So I tend to turn towards works that can be remade to a similar specification. It takes a rare artist for me to go against this thinking but I found one recently in Japanese woodworker Toru Sugimura.

Toru Sugimura makes tableware, accessories and furniture at his studio called Knot Wood Works in Ryugasaki, Ibaraki Prefecture. His works are finely balanced between rusticity and simplicity, an incredibly hard thing to do, but he also showcases the beauty in the wood and compliments this with unique shapes carved with his chisel. They are functional sculptures that are truly one of a kind.

I only have one of each in stock at the moment, but hopefully in the future I will be able to introduce more of his unique works to our shop. It would also be great to see inside his studio and document some of his working processes. The first collection can be found on the link below.

Woodwork by Toru Sugimura now available in the shop →

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