M ATER IAL CULTURE
Mining
fhe Beauty
of Coal
S T O R Y B Y
Andrea DiNoto
On any given day, the field behind Jim Ziv-
ic’s farmhouse is littered with mammoth
chunks of coal, jagged boulders that glitter
like black Stonehenge monoliths. This is
the unlikely material—anthracite, a common
fossil fuel—from which he fashions side ta-
bles and benches whose sculptural beauty
has garnered the attention of artists, interior
designers and collectors around the world.
Zivic is a designer well known for mod-
ernist furniture in industrial materials such
as steel, harness leather, felt and even raw
rubber. But coal? The quirky idea to use it
for furniture came to him 10 years ago when
he heard mention of a Victorian-era coal
table on an episode of
Antiques Roadshow.
Zivic was intrigued enough to contact the
Victoria and Albeit Museum to ask if they
knew of any such thing. Yes, said the cura-
tors, but they’d never seen a piece. He then
called coal mines in the Midwest to deter-
mine if the material could be available for
use other than fuel. Zivic grew up in a Ohio
steel town surrounded by strip mines and
dairy farms, and with a sizable population
of Amish woodworkers. Attracted early
to both utility and artistry, he was drawn
to design, where both come into play. In
1983, Zivic received a bfa in painting from
Ohio Wesleyan, then moved to New York
to embark on a career making art furniture.
Given Zivic’s background and bona fides
(an uncle had been a union organizer in the
coal mines), he easily established rapport
with mining company executives, who in-
vited him to “come on out.” His visit to one
of the mines was “kind of depressing, but
visually amazing,” he says, referring to the
immensity of the strip-mine operation and
the gigantic earthmoving equipment in use
there. He found the miners intrigued by his
ideas, proud of their product and willing
to deliver the coal to his property in New
York’s rural Schoharie County.
030 american craft feb/mario
www.journal-plaza.net & www.freedowns.net
