Studio visit: Yuri Kobayashi
2014 ITE Fellows (2nd from L-R) : Reed Hansuld, Yuri Kobayashi, Eric Adjetey Anang, and The Center's director, Albert LeCoff.
Last week we had the pleasure of visiting the Center for Art in Wood and the Windgate ITE Fellows. Now in its nineteenth year, the Windgate ITE International Residency program supports seven artists for an intense two month creative period. From June to August, the artists live and work together at the University of the Arts.
Yuri Kobayashi
We're huge fans of Japanese woodwork and were excited to meet with Yuri Kobayashi. Born and raised in Japan, Kobayashi relocated to the United States for graduate studies. Her background includes traditional Japanese woodworking, architecture and furniture design. She balances studio time with teaching at the Rhode Island School of Design in the furniture department.
Kobayashi's works in progress
Instead of doing preparatory sketches, Kobayashi often comes to her ideas by directly working and responding to her materials. We were especially attracted to the steam-bent wood studies in her work space. By heating strips of wood, Kobayashi is able to manipulate the wood into sinuous forms.
Yuri's steam-bent works in progress
If you're in the Philadelphia area, be sure to see Kobayashi's work as well as the rest of the ITE Fellows at the Center for Art in Wood's exhibition, allTurnatives: Form + Spirit 2014. The opening reception is August 1, 5-8 pm. For more information, please see The Center for Art in Wood.