Shape 3

2024
Oxidized Cherry
61 x 46 x 23 cm | 24 x 18 x 9 in.

Julian Watts is an artist and woodworker based in Alpine, Oregon. After earning a BFA in Sculpture from the University of Oregon in 2012, Julian returned to his hometown of San Francisco to apprentice under furniture makers before beginning his practice. His work has been exhibited internationally in recent solo shows and has been featured in numerous art and design fairs, including Design Miami/Basel, Design Miami, FOG San Francisco, PAD London and the London Design Festival. His work has been shown at the UK’s Design Museum and the San Jose Institute of Contemporary Art, USA. He has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, The Financial Times, Architectural Digest, The New Yorker, and American Craft Magazine. In 2018, he was shortlisted for the Loewe Craft Prize. Julian has taught courses at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts and the Anderson Ranch Arts Center, both USA and was the Wornick Distinguished Visiting Professor of Wood Arts at California College of the Arts, USA.

Julian combines traditional wood carving techniques with an experimental sculptural approach, exploring intersections between the body, topography, and functional objects. This exploration has evolved into a broader ecosystem of abstract, biomorphic wood carvings, including bowls, furniture, and large-scale purely sculptural works. His dedication to the natural landscape of the West Coast, where he has spent his entire life, underpins his practice. Based in the forests of rural Oregon, Julian sources wood from fallen or salvaged trees and incorporates natural materials such as branches, rocks, leaves, and moss from his property. These materials find their way directly or indirectly into his work, as raw carving materials or as inspiration for shape, texture, and structure.