{{Short description|American sculptor, designer and woodworker}} {{Infobox person | name = James Prestini | image = | birth_name = | birth_date = {{birth date|1908|1|13}} | birth_place = Waterford, Connecticut | death_date = {{death date and age|1993|7|26|1908|1|12}} | death_place = Berkeley, California | education = Yale University | occupation = Sculptor, woodworker | awards = Guggenheim Fellowship for Creative Arts, US & Canada (1972)<ref>{{Cite web|title=John Simon Guggenheim Foundation {{!}} James L. Prestini|url=https://www.gf.org/fellows/all-fellows/james-l-prestini/|access-date=2020-07-27}}</ref> }}
'''James Libero Prestini''' (January 13, 1908 – July 26, 1993) was an American sculptor, designer and woodworker.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=University of California: In Memoriam, 1994|url=http://texts.cdlib.org/view?docId=hb5g50061q&doc.view=frames&chunk.id=div00080&toc.depth=1&toc.id=|access-date=2020-07-27|website=texts.cdlib.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=James Prestini {{!}} Widewalls|url=https://www.widewalls.ch/artists/james-prestini|access-date=2020-07-27|website=www.widewalls.ch}}</ref>
== Early life and education == He was born on January 13, 1908, in Waterford, Connecticut. He graduated as a mechanical engineer from Yale University in 1930.<ref name=":0" /> In 1933 he began teaching mathematics at Lake Forest Academy.
== Career == James held the post of professor of design at the University of California, Berkeley from 1956 to 1975.<ref name="smma">{{Cite web|title=James Prestini {{!}} Smithsonian American Art Museum|url=https://americanart.si.edu/artist/james-prestini-3879|access-date=2020-07-27|website=americanart.si.edu}}</ref> He was known for his art of crafting wood into thin bowls and platters,<ref name="chicago">{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=James Prestini|url=https://www.artic.edu/artworks/102298/bowl|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2020-07-27|website=The Art Institute of Chicago}}</ref> having qualities similar to that of glass or ceramics.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Craft in America » James Prestini|url=https://www.craftinamerica.org/artist/james-prestini|access-date=2020-07-27|website=www.craftinamerica.org}}</ref><ref name="moma">{{Cite web|title=James Prestini {{!}} MoMA|url=https://www.moma.org/artists/4729|access-date=2020-07-27|website=The Museum of Modern Art}}</ref> He made over 400 sculptures throughout his career.<ref>{{Cite web|title=James Prestini|url=https://www.turninggallery.org/james-prestini.html|access-date=2020-07-27|website=TurningGallery.org}}</ref> His work is held in the collections of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Museum of Modern Art and the Art Institute of Chicago.<ref name="smma"/><ref name="chicago"/><ref name="moma"/>
== Death == He died of heart failure on July 26, 1993.<ref name=":0" />
== References == {{reflist}} {{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prestini, James}} Category:1908 births Category:1993 deaths Category:20th-century American sculptors Category:20th-century American male artists Category:American woodworkers Category:People from Waterford, Connecticut Category:American male sculptors Category:University of California, Berkeley faculty Category:Yale University alumni Category:American designers Category:Sculptors from Connecticut Category:Lake Forest Academy Category:Schoolteachers from Connecticut Category:Schoolteachers from Illinois Category:Sculptors from California Category:20th-century American artisans