Robert & Tor Erickson

Furniture

Robert and Tor Erickson. Wapiti Chair (2020). Maple version. Dimensions: 28.5” h x 22.5” w x 22” d. ©Erickson Woodworking 2020. Courtesy of the artists.

Robert and Tor Erickson create sculptural furniture in the Sierra Nevada foothills, a location that shapes their work. The duo prefer to use local hardwoods: California walnut, California black oak, Pacific Madrone and Pacific maple. Often, they rescue wood from the scrap heap, salvaging aging walnut trees culled by orchards as nut production declines.

They condition wood slowly and gently, air drying lumber for one to two years, then using a solar-powered kiln to finish the drying process.

And they strive to give to, and take from, the land in equal measure, leading local efforts to conserve old-growth forests and use solar power.