Kazuya Watanabe
medium: furniture design
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Contact information
Artist resides in: Madison, WI
Email Address: kwatanabedesigns@yahoo.com
Web site: www.kwatanabedesigns.com/
Artist statement
With more than fourteen years of experience building furniture and cabinets, in the past few years I have begun experimenting with creating functional pieces of furniture that also allow space for the four-legged friends that share our lives. My designs are contemporary and modern, utilizing wood, plastics and metals.
As a fine woodworker, my pieces are each made individually with attention given to detail and finish. Each pet cabinet that I make is numbered and bears a stamp with my logo. I have also done some work in concrete in other design projects.
Inquiries are welcome, and, after a consultation, will be responded to promptly with a cost estimate. References are available upon request.
Biography
I grew up in a small town in Nagasaki prefecture, Japan. This town is famous for its pottery. I watched my parents creating porcelain and ceramic works from an early age. I moved to Wisconsin almost fifteen years ago and began learning the art of making furniture and cabinets. For the last two years, I have been concentrating on creating modern design spaces for dogs, cats and other small animals, that also serve as functional pieces of furniture (and they are named after the companion animals that have modeled them). Many of my pieces incorporate aluminum or plastic and I use environmentally-friendly finishes. Having a cat or dog is not a prerequisite to enjoying one of my pieces!