Vintage Live Edge Burl Box by Michael Elkan - Jewelry Box / Desk Box

Fine example of an iconic Michael Elkan hand made carved burl jewerly box. Made from birds Eye Maple burl, this box has a small interior 2"x 2.5" carved interior box within the larger carved box. The sculptural architectural surprise of the interior stands in contrast to the live edge natural exterior, making these boxes coveted collectors items. This Modernist influenced design also features beveled sides to visually play with the burl features.
Signed underneath. Excellent condition.

About the artist:

Born in Philadelphia in 1942, Elkan spent his youth working in his family’s store, which sold children’s clothing. At the age of 18, he started his career as a salesman in the fashion industry before working in manufacturing.

Despite a lack of formal education, Elkan began designing apparel and his talents led him to becoming a designer for brands such as Forum Sportswear and Faded Glory during the late 1960s. His fashion designs appeared in numerous publications including Esquire, GQ, Menswear Daily and the New York Times.

In 1973, Elkan quit his job as a fashion designer and, with his wife, trekked across the United States. Upon arriving in Oregon, Elkan became enamored with the state’s forests and decided to settle there. After several years of farm and forestry work, Elkan became deeply interested in maple burl wood and began making live-edge burl boxes.

By 1980, Elkan established Silver Splinter (later Michael Elkan Studio) where he designed and produced items such as decorative boxes, jewelry boxes, console tables, stools and other furniture and objects. That year, Elkan’s unique approach to design caught the eye of acclaimed American designer and architect George Nakashima, who bought several of Elkan’s pieces to sell in his studio.

In 1993, Elkan was commissioned to create furniture for Oregon’s newly opened Museum at Warm Springs. Two years later, he wrote his book, Reading the Wood: Techniques and Projects from a Master Woodworker.

Elkan decided to retire from woodworking in 2002. After closing his studio, he moved to Mexico to explore other artistic endeavors such as architecture, garden design and creating cement furniture.

Before he died in 2014, Elkan’s pieces were shown in several major gallery exhibitions and featured at the Smithsonian Craft Show, the American Craft Museum and elsewhere. Today, Elkan’s works are held in many private collections, including that of acclaimed textile designer Jack Lenor Larsen and others, and are highly sought by interior designers, decorators and collectors of 20th-century wood furniture.