art

Sustain Me

The shabby “chic” (and yes, putting chic in quotation marks in that context is a deliberate act…those two words together are the epitome of oxymoron) aesthetic has never appealed to us. But the idea of repurposing used materials is appealing indeed (because we love wood AND trees AND birds, etceteras), and is being put into action all over Portland, one aspect of sustainable building practices being incorporating as much of the existing or pre-used materials as possible.

On a smaller scale, designer and artist Kirby Jones, who manages ReFind Furniture at the ReBuilding Center is making some fine, clean tables and benches with reclaimed materials. His TimberLine Bench (above) has a reclaimed old growth redwood seat with douglas fir beams. And his TimberLine Low Table (below) is all reclaimed old growth douglas fir (with a natural graphite finish top). We love that Kirby’s work honors and elevates that regional staple, the humble doug fir, a wood typically used to frame buildings not support elegant pieces of furniture.

You can always see work by Jones, a former artist-in-residence at the Oregon College of Art & Craft, at ReFind Furniture at the ReBuilding Center (3625 N Mississippi) and this month, some of his work is at Albina Community Bank (430 NW 10th) in the Pearl District.

POSTED: August 8th, 2007 | AUTHOR: lisa | FILED UNDER: art | TAGS: art | No Comments »

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