Architect

In 1970, Mira Nakashima joined the family business run by her father, renowned furniture designer and craftsman George Nakashima. Since his death in 1990, Mira has helmed Nakashima Woodworkers, now a 21-building complex and National Historic Landmark nestled among the trees in New Hope, Pennsylvania, overseeing the production of her father’s iconic pieces while also designing her own. As she writes in her new book, The Nakashima Process Book, each piece is “the culmination of much effort, a conscious simplification of design that allows the wood to tell its own story, modulated by an architect’s eye for proportions and structure.” The 82-year-old continues to uphold a tradition of exquisite craftsmanship, deep respect for materials, and the humanity inherent in making something by hand.