Coffee Table From "Minguren" Series
Manufactured by Sakura Seisakusho
Japan, ca. 1963
Walnut

Measurements
110 x 62 x 35h cm
43,3 x 24,4 x 13,8h in

Provenance
Private collection

Details
Named after the Sankei Minguren (Sanuki Folk Craft Guild), established in Kagawa Prefecture in 1963.
This example was carefully used for many years in a private residence by a longtime admirer of Nakashima’s work and later maintained by Sakura Seisakusho.

Literature
Sakura Seisakusho Catalogue, Minguren Series, 1963

About
The Minguren I Coffee Table exemplifies George Nakashima’s profound respect for the natural beauty and vitality of wood. Created in collaboration with the Sanuki Minguren (Folk Craft Guild), the series sought to harmonize traditional Japanese craftsmanship with Nakashima’s modern organic aesthetic. The table’s solid single slab top reveals the grain’s natural flow, while the elegantly sculpted base demonstrates balance and restraint. More than a piece of furniture, it is a meditation on material integrity—an embodiment of Nakashima’s belief that every tree has a soul, and that the craftsman’s task is to reveal its inherent spirit through form and function.

Biography
George Nakashima (1905–1990) was a visionary woodworker, architect, and one of the pioneers of the American studio furniture movement. Born in Spokane, Washington, he studied architecture at the University of Washington and earned a master’s degree from MIT before traveling through Europe, India, and Japan, experiences that shaped his spiritual and aesthetic sensibility.
Nakashima’s philosophy combined Eastern mysticism with modern design, emphasizing the unity of material, maker, and user. After World War II, he established his workshop in New Hope, Pennsylvania, where he developed his signature approach using natural slabs, free edges, and exposed joinery.
In the 1960s, Nakashima began collaborating with Sakura Seisakusho in Japan, producing pieces that bridged American craftsmanship with Japanese tradition, including the Minguren series. His works are now held in major museum collections worldwide, and his influence continues through the Nakashima Woodworkers studio, directed by his daughter, Mira Nakashima.