# Mira Nakashima artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/mira-nakashima/
Profile generated: 2026-05-23T21:07:02.641Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Nationality: American
- Movements: American Studio Craft, Studio Furniture movement
- Common media: Wood furniture, Architecture

## About Mira Nakashima

Mira Nakashima is an American architect and furniture maker who serves as president and creative director of George Nakashima, Woodworker, the renowned workshop her father George Nakashima (1905–1990) founded in New Hope, Pennsylvania. Born in 1942, she trained as an architect before assuming leadership of the studio after her father's death. Under her direction, the workshop continues to produce handcrafted furniture that honors the Nakashima philosophy — respecting the soul and spirit of the tree and the natural character of wood. She has authored works including a Process Book detailing the workshop's methods. Nakashima is recognized in library authority files including VIAF, the Library of Congress, and Wikidata as an architect and furniture maker. Collectors encounter her work at auction in the contexts of studio furniture and twentieth-century design, where clear attribution between her designs and those of her father is an important consideration.

## Common works and media

Common works associated with Mira Nakashima include handcrafted wood furniture — tables, chairs, benches, and cabinets — often featuring natural or live edges, visible grain patterns, and traditional joinery. The workshop produces both custom commissions and studio production pieces in hardwoods such as walnut, cherry, and maple. Architectural projects and design drawings may also appear. At auction, pieces encountered are typically studio furniture, decorative arts, and occasional design prototypes or study models.

## Market and appraisal context

Mira Nakashima's work appears in the studio furniture and twentieth-century design auction market, where pieces from the Nakashima workshop are highly sought after. The most significant valuation factor is attribution: works designed and made by George Nakashima himself typically command the strongest prices, while pieces produced under Mira's direction or from the continuing workshop carry their own distinct market position. Physical characteristics — wood species, natural-edge detailing, joinery quality, and condition — are important appraisal factors. Provenance documentation and original workshop records support strong attribution. Collectors and appraisers should note that the workshop remains active, and new production pieces are available directly from the studio, which affects the secondary-market context for recent works.

## Appraisily data basis

Appraisily artist pages combine artist identity research from authority files and institutional sources with auction records, auction-house context, sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lots when those records are available. For Mira Nakashima, identity data draws on VIAF, the Library of Congress, Wikidata, and the official Nakashima Woodworkers site. Market observations are general and do not constitute appraisals; professional valuation requires direct inspection and comparable-sale analysis.

## Sources

- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q43134603
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mira_Nakashima
- VIAF (OCLC): https://viaf.org/viaf/24905684/
- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n2003007709
- George Nakashima, Woodworker: https://nakashimawoodworkers.com/