Natanel Gluska

Natanel was born in Israel and now lives and works in Bangkok. He trained at the Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam graduating in 1989 since which time he has built up an international reputation for his playful, roughly hewn, artistic furniture, paintings and unique handmade wood etching prints.

Gluska’s works with wood is unique, with every item a one-off. He takes his inspiration from the world around him and from a series of hand-drawn sketches he attacks a virgin tree stump with a chainsaw and, in one piece, fashions from it a hybrid of sculpture or wooden print. Inhibitions, whether creative or market-led, are shed allowing his work to show a freedom of expression missing in mass-produced design. The fact that he works in wood rather than any other massive material allows his craftsmanship to prevail and prevents his work slipping into gimmickry or parody. Natanel underlines the importance on the culture of design of individuals who still make by hand and whose small but significant business initiatives have found noteworthy success.