La Casa Rota
SIGNATURE FURNITURE
“The primeval man in offering the first garland to his maiden thereby transcended the brute. He became human in thus rising above the crude necessities of nature. He entered the realm of art when he perceived the subtle use of the useless;” this poem by Okakura Tenshin and from The Book of Tea was a source of inspiration for Lorenzo García when creating the La Casa Rota workshop, a space conceived for the design and construction of wooden objects that could well be considered works of art.
The creative universe of this master woodworker includes everyday objects –like boxes and fruit bowls– and chairs, tables, custom-made games for children and even exclusive jewelry boxes, some of which were created in cooperation with prestigious jewelry designers. His most recent piece, the Gilda jewelry box, brings together style, boldness of forms, and film references in one immensely beautiful object. For creating these objects, the artist uses salvaged pieces from old buildings, traditional fine woods that are produced sustainably (such as ebony), and even other woods commonly used for the construction of violins, like cornstalk dracaena. Pieces like fittings and hinges are made by hand in solid silver.
These pieces, which are exquisitely made, create a bond between objects and their owners, featuring stark forms that reveal the artist’s background: architecture. Just like the furniture by the famous architect and woodworker George Nakashima, every millimeter of the pieces by Lorenzo García is calculated and designed as if a building were being constructed – there is no room for error.this results in exclusive original pieces in which design and structural concept go hand in hand.
La Casa Rota follows along the same path as the Arts & Crafts artistic movement of the late nineteenth century, brought on by a group of architects who wanted to recover the medieval arts and artisanal trades in response to the growing degree of industrialization. In Lorenzo García’s case, he inherited his technique for working with wood from his mentor, the renowned English woodworker David Charlesworth.
In addition to manufacturing and selling products, Lorenzo García gives woodworking courses in his studio in San Sebastián located just next to Tabakalera (a true hotspot for creators) to anyone interested – from elite athletes and great entrepreneurs to lovers of wood of all ages and backgrounds. The experience is quite worthwhile: there are few things more beautiful than learning from a great master who brings out the beauty in materials without artifice.