The work on the far left in the group photo is “Furniture Factory.”
This work was exhibited under “Machine Shop” at the
Salons of America in 1925. Bumpei Usui traveled around
the world with his brother, dealing furniture, and when they
stopped in New York City, they fell in love with the area
and settled there. The painting skillfully depicts many
furniture artisans working at different stages of the
production process.
The New York Shimpo (New York Newspaper) wrote of
Bumpei Usui’s work, “The painting of ‘Furniture Factory’ is your
masterpiece…The figures are scattered apart because of
the lack of focus, but if you put them together, it is a
flawless painting.