Wharton Esherick

Wharton Esherick began his career as a painter, after studying at the School of Industrial Arts and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. About ten years later, he taught at an experimental school in Alabama, where he began carving wood frames for his paintings and woodcuts. His work in wood was a watershed moment for Esherick; he changed his focus to wood carving and furniture making. Esherick began making his sculptural furniture in the 1930s, applying principles and stylistic motifs from contemporary art movements. During the 1940s, his furniture began to take on flowing forms that contrasted with the straight lines and rigid angles of mass-produced furniture at that time. The forms of Esherick's later work were dictated by the wood itself. His home and studio in rural Pennsylvania now serve as the Wharton Esherick Museum.