Long Beach woodworker John Nyquist, 72, has hand-built his legacy among aficionados of midcentury design. Though Nyquist still isn’t a household name among the general public, collectors of classic California design have sought his work for almost 50 years, drawn to painstakingly crafted furniture whose hard angles are softened by gentle curves and sloping lines.
In May, the auction house Wright sold a single 1960s ladder-back chair by Nyquist for $7,200 – confirmation that his work has joined the canon of classic West Coast crafts.