 – A decade of teaching and making in Maine has culminated in a major honor for Yuri Kobayashi, a furniture and sculpture artist, who has received of…){kind=link}
GARDINER, ME (PNAN) – A decade of teaching and making in Maine has culminated in a major honor for Yuri Kobayashi, a furniture and sculpture artist, who has received of the 2026 Maine Craft Artist Award, recognizing her work, career, and dedication to craft education as reaching a distinguished mark of excellence.
Kobayashi was selected by Perry Price, the Executive Director of Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, who said, “As a sculptor and furniture maker, Yuri Kobayashi demonstrates throughout her body of work a dedication to a compelling and inspiring vision of craft for our contemporary moment. From large-scale installations to intimate furniture, Kobayashi’s understanding of her material and dedication to refined craftsmanship is marked by a singular voice in design and in fabrication – each piece is uniquely and unmistakably hers. Beyond her accomplishments as a maker is her talent and generosity as an educator. In spaces across Maine and throughout the country, Kobayashi’s thoughtful and inspiring instruction in workshops opens the studio to new voices and new ideas that advance the field into the future.”
Since 2009, the Maine Craft Artist Awards recognize individuals whose dedication, achievement, and impact have made a significant contribution to craft in Maine. The award honors both a distinguished studio practice and meaningful service to the field, recognizing that an artist’s contribution to craft may be demonstrated through excellence in one area or through a combination of both.
For the past ten years, Kobayashi has called the Center for Furniture Craftsmanship home base for her practice, as an instructor, and as Lead Fellow. Her work there has made a lasting contribution to craft education through teaching, mentorship, and engagement with students learning woodworking in Maine and beyond.
Kobayashi’s work explores the expressive possibilities of wood through a combination of traditional woodworking techniques, technical precision, and imaginative form. The work can span from tabletop furnishings to full room installations, often using ash and steam-bending to create the forms. The result reflects poetic expressions of curiosity and emotion.
Kobayashi will be celebrated on December 3, 2026, from 5:30-7:30 pm at the Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport. The ceremony will include tributes from guest speakers, remarks from Maine Crafts Association leadership, and the presentation of a handcrafted award pin and certificate.
About
Now based in Midcoast Maine, Kobayashi was born in Japan, where she earned a B.A. in architectural design at Musashino Art University, then trained at the Shinrin Takumi Juku, a traditional wood training school located in Takayama City, known for its long history as a woodworking region. Following this, Kobayashi moved to the United States and received an MFA in furniture design from San Diego State University and taught the practice for over a decade at the Rhode Island School of Design. Kobayashi has exhibited nationally and been awarded several competitive residencies, grants, and fellowships, including the Windgate Artist-in-Residencies at SUNY Purchase, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the Arizona State University Art Museum, and a 2024 Fellow of the American Craft Council.