Transformations in Wood

Stefan Bishop is a real estate developer turned designer-maker who works in a spacious studio in Glassell Park near Mount Washington. There he creates objects at the intersection of art and design, from tall sculptural pieces to functional items like coffee tables or shelving. But each is made in the same way, carved out of salvaged wood. He talks about a series of sculpted towers that he calls Monoliths.

covers the decorative arts and interior design for the Hollywood Reporter and French Architectural Digest, and DnA. She says that Bishop’s "noble and beautiful" pieces are the kind that interior designers use as a visual anchor in a design scheme. His work is painstakingly crafted and priced accordingly, costing thousands of dollars, but the pieces lend themselves to becoming heirlooms – that quality is reinforced by the mighty age, scale and elemental nature of the wood they are made of, as Mallery found out when examining a soaring 11 foot "Monolith."

Black fir monolith

Photo Stefan Bishop

Monolith on its side in Bishop's studio

Photo courtesy Mallery Roberts Morgan

Morgan talks with Bishop about his art and functional pieces carved from solid pieces of wood. Although his path to Glassell Park sounds smooth, there were some bumps along the way. Bishop's first line of furniture for production launches this summer; his limited edition can be found at Blackman Cruz in Los Angeles. He has also made available two end-tables exclusively to KCRW members, in DnA Design Picks at KCRW's Store.