Artist

Ron Kent

born Chicago, IL 1931-died Honolulu, HI 2018

Biography: Ron Kent runs his own investment company in Hawaii, and turns bowls as a sideline. He began woodworking quite by chance.
His work is in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, the Louvre (Musée des Arts Decoratif), the Bishop Museum of the Honolulu Academy of Arts, and the High Museum of Art in Atlanta.
He has presented his works to the Pope—and to three U.S. presidents and two Supreme Court justices, as well as Emperor Akihito, of Japan.
White House Collection of American Crafts exhibition (Washington D.C.: National Museum of American Art, 1995)
: Luce Artist Biography
Ron Kent works with Norfolk pine to create delicate, open vessels. He exploits the natural translucency of the wood by applying numerous layers of oil to his turned forms. The oil seeps into the wood and hardens, exposing features from inside and giving the material a fiery glow. Examples of Kent's simple and elegant forms have been presented to world leaders including Pope John Paul II, Emperor Akihito of Japan, and Presidents Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan.