Interesting Estate Sale of a Woodworker Around The Corner

[Jim Becker]

My neighbor Mary texted me earlier today about an estate sale around the corner from our street...apparently a deceased woodworker. But not just "a woodworker"; rather, it was an Italian man who started his career working for George Nakashima before going out on his own for the last 60+ years. The house was pretty well picked over but if I had a place for it, the dining table and chairs would have come home with me. This man's work was very strongly influenced by Nakashima and there apparently were quite a few actual Nakashima pieces in the home prior to yesterday when Rago (auctioneer in Lambertville NJ who has a lot of Nakashima expertise) picked them up. The house also had a lot of hand carved doors and other features that were wonderful...even though the house itself is rather dated, etc. (It will be an as-is RE sale as it turns out)

Out back was the shop and from the outside, the building sat in to the landscape nicely. The man's son, Gino, said that NOBODY was ever allowed in there...not even his mother who was married to the woodworker. Gino also said that his dad would be beside himself with all the people looking through his stuff, especially because there were a lot of people who couldn't even spell "wood" or "tool". (really) I do think that the building was repurposed long ago as it seemed like it might have been either added on to at a separate level or had provisions for livestock. Who knows...it was open and had lots of light. Here's a pano from one end on the slightly raised upper level.

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Spied on a shelf was this seat for a Nakashima Mira chair...it was in very poor condition, so I left it there. But wait until the last photo.

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And then there was this chair design which is identical to the chairs in that dining room I mentioned above. These get natural woven seats and backs made from rope...there were several spools of the stuff in the shop. You can see the Nakashima influence there.

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No good estate sale goes without some form of humor...

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I did not walk away without anything. While the shop was very picked over, I did grab a couple of gouges in formats I don't have and...this Nakashima Mira design chair. While it's not an "official" one, it's got all the elements and I have a place for it once I clean it up and restore it. It also gives me a reference model for the set of them that I started in 2003 and plan on getting back on soon. BTW, those three items cost me $30.

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I may go back in the next couple of days to paw through the remaining lumber but it's all scrap and shorts and given my current storage setup, I'd have to be selective.

[Malcolm Schweizer]

Wow, you can surely see the Nakashima influence. Nice find.

[Patty Hann]

My neighbor Mary texted me earlier today about an estate sale around the corner from our street...apparently a deceased woodworker....

Out back was the shop and from the outside, the building sat in to the landscape nicely. The man's son, Gino, said that NOBODY was ever allowed in there...not even his mother who was married to the woodworker. Gino also said that his dad would be beside himself with all the people looking through his stiff, especially because there were a lot of people who couldn't even spell "wood" or "tool".

No good estate sale goes without some form of humor...

Well Jim, talk about humor....was that intentional?

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Sounds like a great find Jim.

[Andrew Hughes]

Thanks for sharing this Jim.
It’s a sobering reality we all face .
What is in the window above the blue bandsaw. Looks creepy

[John Kananis]

Wow, really cool and thanks for sharing. I can totally see the influence.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

Neat-O! I love the 3 leg chair

[Jim Becker]

What is in the window above the blue bandsaw. Looks creepy

I actually don't know as it had a cover over it and I felt uncomfortable dragging the ladder over to that side to check it out. I suspect it was some kind of statue/carving which he clearly was into along with chairs, furniture and other casework. I was more focused on "low hanging fruit", at least if there was anything left. I could have grabbed more chisels and gouges, but most would have been duplicative to what I have and since I'm not really an "old tool" collector (quotes to insure that the tools are equated to be old rather than me...err...well...I'm "mature", not "old". LOL) that wouldn't really have been productive.

That bandsaw was a real monster....although it also seemed clunky. I don't believe the wheels were bigger than 16-18", but didn't open it up. The massive table saw was a gem. I hope someone who will put it to work gets it. Apparently, a massive jointer was picked up the day before.

[Edward Weber]

Was his name Gino Russo?
He once showed me a chalice he made for a trip he was taking to Rome.
I only met him once, 1984 or 85, very nice man.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

Wow, you can surely see the Nakashima influence. Nice find.

I was interested to see how much the Shakers influenced Mr. Nakashima and the rest of the world.

IMG_1970.jpg IMG_1972.jpg
snips from The Shaker Legacy.

[Jim Becker]

Was his name Gino Russo?
He once showed me a chalice he made for a trip he was taking to Rome.
I only met him once, 1984 or 85, very nice man.

I just looked it up on the Bucks County Parcel Map...and yes, he was Girolamo Russo, AKA Gino. House and shop is on Evergreen near DeVal University. The son (also Geno) is really nice, so I suspect the fruit doesn't fall far from the tree...other than the son knows little about woodworking. LOL Ironic.

This Google search brings up a lot of his work...including photos of his dining chair design that I mentioned in the OP. Absolutely beautiful work. (Note that the search also shows some irrelevant things including for different people...nature of the beast)

https://www.google.com/search?q=gino...&ie=UTF-8#ip=1

[Jim Becker]

I was interested to see how much the Shakers influenced Mr. Nakashima and the rest of the world.

IMG_1970.jpg IMG_1972.jpg
snips from The Shaker Legacy.

That's very true as the simplicity was very appealing. And the same contrast holds true for my other idol, Thos Moser...very shaker, but with some strong hints of Japanese influence in certain design lines. This is all something I truly appreciate.

[Peter Mich]

Thanks for sharing this. Walking in there must have been a bit like opening and entering a time capsule…

[Jim Becker]

Thanks for sharing this. Walking in there must have been a bit like opening and entering a time capsule…

Yea, it was, both for the house and the shop. While power tools were certainly part of the process, as they are at Nakashima Studios, there was clearly a focus on traditional joinery as well as carving which I kinda have the feeling was his true creative outlet. I'm sad I missed "the good stuff" that left the day before I was there...I'm sure there were some wonderful hand tools that got bought for pennies on the dollar. The estate "wants it gone!". The carved doors, especially the double front door on the house, were stunning. I hope that the future owner preserves them, but who knows?

[John Kananis]

I've always wanted to do a variation of the George Nakashima Conoid chair.. this is making me want to take the plunge but a little too much on the plate right now. One day.