Changing times
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Updated: September 02, 2009 12:59 PM
By the last page of the woodworking book, Peter Pierobon was also checking out ads for Westfalias.
He packed up a few belongings from his parent’s house in Lynn Valley, waved goodbye to a Capilano College ceramics course and headed east on a 10-month journey.
Pierobon was on a mission.
The year was 1979. The art world was bursting at its seems and Pierobon was determined to enter the field of studio furniture — but first he needed to find the right school.
That school ended up being in Rochester, N.Y., where for two years Pierobon was tutored by “the world’s most famous art furniture practitioner” Wendell Castle.
Upon graduating and working under Wendell as an employee, Pierobon travelled north to Toronto.
“It was the place to go in Canada,” for arts, he says.
The majority of Pierobon’s clientele was across the border. In the 1980s and early 90s, Pierobon followed the southern customers, spending close to 20 years in Philadelphia and San Francisco.
He moved back to the North Shore in 2000 after falling for a painter Sibeal Foyle who lived in West Van. Pierobon set up a studio in Lower Lonsdale, shipping his pieces to collectors as far away as Florida and as famous as horror writer Stephen King.
“Then it kind of came to an end with 9/11,” Pierobon says.
People’s wallet’s tightened, along with the border crossing. Posting costs increased five fold, he says.
Known collectors houses were filling up and younger collectors were drawn to other genres, such as mid-50s designs. The final wooden stake was the current economic slump.
“It is a very difficult time,” Pierobon says.
Two months ago, Pierobon received news he hopes will open new possibilities in a local market. He received a Canada Council $80,000 grant, money he will use to incorporate technology in the production of his pieces.
Pierobon proposes to use a computer program to cut out components of his furniture. This ultimately allows more than one item to be made at a time, cutting costs to collectors and enticing new art enthusiasts into the market.
It won’t be mass production, but will create 10 high-end items rather than Pierobon’s hours of labour only producing one.
Pierobon also plans to incorporate the North Shore’s natural elements into his work. Unlike Eastern Canada, where art lovers seem lured by conceptual work, West Coasters are interested in art that reflects the natural environment, he says.
“I want to develop a whole new body of work for myself, but also something that is not already out there.”
Pierobon’s furniture is currently on display at the PNE’s home improvement showcase which runs until Monday, Sept. 7. It will also be a part of the Interior Design Show West at the Vancouver Convention Centre on Sept. 17 to 20 and displayed in the Eastside Culture Crawl Visual Arts festival in November.
For more information on Pierobon’s work visit peterpierobon.com.
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