Profile

Jake Antonelli is a Philadelphia-born furniture designer and maker. His background in woodworking began in 1994 as an apprentice in local cabinetmakers shops. He pursued Fine Woodworking at Bucks County Community College in Newtown, Pa. He then completed a bachelor of fine art degree in Furniture Design at Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, R.I. In 2003, Antonelli was the recipient of the Robyn Horn Scholarship for woodturning and spent one year as Artist In Residence at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in Gatlinburg, Tenn. He completed a five-year apprenticeship with renowned furniture maker Michael Hurwitz in Philadelphia, Pa. Antonelli is a Senior Lecturer in the Wood Program in the Crafts department at UArts. He lives in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he maintains Jake Antonelli Furiture and Design, a limited production woodworking studio that provides service to residential and commercial clients.

Artist Statement
My work is based on observing the way we live in our domestic environments. Identifying usefulness for constructed objects is my objective. I gather practical ideas from our ever-changing lifestyles. As a designer, I believe that furniture must meet three principle criteria: structure, function and aesthetic. The reconciliation of these principles is part of a learning process. These principles are dealt with carefully at my drawing desk, in the wood studio and by making observations in the world.

In my studio practice there is a non-linear development in establishing a result. I believe in focusing on one product at a time. It is important to pay attention to the material limitations, the purpose of the object and the intended aesthetic. I have a reverence for fine woodworking and the history of the craft. I also value the importance of long-lasting quality and heirloom status. I aspire to create work that reflects the way we live.

Exhibitions
2010 "Be Our Guest" Ohio Craft Museum, Columbus, Ohio
2009 "Fine Woodworking at 30" Bucks County Community College, Newtown, Pa.
2008 "A Perfect Marriage: Wood and Color" Collectors of Wood Art, Sofa, Chicago
2007 "Roll Call" Woodturning Center, Philadelphia, Pa.
2005 "Small Treasures" Del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, Calif.
2004 "Vessel" Sienna Gallery, Lenox, Mass.
2004 "Curviture" Furniture Society, Asheville, N.C.
2004 "Small Treasures" Del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, Calif.
2004 "Artist-In-Residence exhibition" Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, Gatlinburg, Tenn.
2003 "Emerging Perspectives" Meredith Gallery, Baltimore, Md.