ERIK OWEN

Erik came to California from western Montana to study fine woodworking in his early twenties. Having grown up in a back to the land environment that focused on traditional craft and way of life, Erik began his furniture making career with already honed hand skills and a reverence for process. During his formal study under James Krenov, Erik garnered an appreciation for the art of refinement: slowing down, considering proportions, color, and precision.

He spent 10 successful years specializing in the craft of traditional timber framing, utilizing entirely hand cut structures composed of interlocking joints and hardwood pegs. Following that partnership, Erik reignited his passion for furniture in the literal molten fires of his own bronze casting foundry. Mastering the inherent difficulties of sand casting, Erik found that surrendering to the constraints gave him fresh access to elegant enduring forms. Carving the wooden patterns for casting bronze enhanced an instinctual connection between process and design, reinforcing the truth that the materials and the tools used to shape them become the intrinsic elements of design.

Erik maintains a signature high level of quality and attention to detail throughout the creation of every piece. Focused on continuity in design, he walks the hand carved patterns from the wood shop - full of vintage woodworking machinery and hand tools - to his foundry and back to the wood shop for completion. Made individually and by hand, there are subtle differences even among pieces of similar design, an unavoidable and satisfying mark of the maker.

Erik continues to explore the intersection of design and method and to expand on his multi-material aesthetic. An evolving mix of bronze, wood, stone, leather, and glass are the hallmark of a lifetime passion for process and all things handmade. His unique, sculptural furniture fully reflects the Erik Owen Design application of time honored tools and techniques to a modern aesthetic.