Toshio Odate (born 1930) is a Japanese-born American sculptor, woodworker, craftsman, author, and educator.[1] He specializes in Japanese woodworking and is a noted shoji maker.[2][3] He is the author of, Japanese Woodworking Tools: Their Tradition, Spirit and Use (Taunton Press, 1984).
Toshio Odate | |
---|---|
Born | 1930 (age 93–94) |
Other names | Toshio Ōdate |
Years active | sculptor, woodworker, educator |
Toshio Odate was born in 1930 in Tokyo, Japan.[4] He trained in Japan as a cabinetmaker early in his career for 7 years starting at age 16, this was due to the economic pressure in Japan post-World War II.[5][6] In 1948, he moved to the United States for one year for college, followed by a year in Denmark for study of Scandinavian design.[5] He was planning to return to Japan to teach, however he changed his mind and Odate then decided to return to the United States, to live in New York City.[5] In 1973, he moved to Woodbury, Connecticut.[5]
He taught sculpture classes at Cooper Union briefly, followed by teaching at State University of New York at Purchase, Brooklyn Museum Art School, and Pratt Institute.[5] At Brookfield Craft Center, Odate taught shoji-making classes.[3]
His work is included in the public collection at UCR Arts,[7] Memorial Art Gallery,[8] Chazen Museum of Art,[9] and Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden.[10] Odate is included in the Brooklyn Museum Interviews of Artists, 1965–1968,[11] and the Stephen Radich Gallery Records, 1942–1979,[12] at the Archives of American Art.