Contributed by: Teresa Vitale / Skaneateles Artisans

Skaneateles Artisans is proud to welcome two prestigious artist from the Roycrofters At large Association. The works of Howard Lehning and Thomas Kegler will be on display for the month of August.
With Live music by : Louis Nocilly’s “Jazzitude”
The gallery offers off-street parking and accepts major credit cards.
First Friday August 7, 2009, from 6:00 – 9:00pm
Visit their website at www.skaneatelesartisans.com. For more information, call 315-685-8580.

Contact person:
Teresa Vitale
315-689-5037
email:  tvitale1@twcny.rr.com

Howard Lehning attended Carnegie-Mellon University / architecture, and Rochester Institute of Technology / Photography and Design. Was engaged as a professional draftsman and designer for 20 years. Was employed as Senior Designer for the Kittinger Furniture Company in Buffalo, NY and for the Baker Furniture Company of Grand Rapids, Michigan. I have been involved with the Colonial Williamsburg Furniture Reproduction Program, and the Preservation Society of Newport County, Rhode Island.

A woodworker and inveterate tinkerer all my life, in 1983 I started HEARTWOOD, a small woodworking shop in East Aurora, NY. Was accepted as a Roycroft Artisan in 1984.
Continued my shop commission work while otherwise gainfully employed.

In 1992 I reorganized as HR LEHNING FINE FURNITURE & TIMEPIECES and started full-time as furniture maker. I have been engaged for 17 years producing commission work as well as developing my own product line of furniture, clocks, and small wood items. Part of my business has been to design and build high-end kitchen installations, and several residential libraries. I have also produced furniture reproductions for Graycliff, the Darwin and Isabella Martin summer home in Derby, NY that was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. I have trained three apprentices, one of whom has started his own cabinet business. My current apprentice is also an Air Force Reservist.

I currently sit on the Board of Directors of the Roycrofters-at-Large Association, the parent Not-For-Profit organization that administers for the Roycroft Artisans. At present there are 60 Roycroft Artisans and Master Artisans. We produce a summer festival and winter craft shows each year, as well as an educational lecture series, scholarship program, and the renowned Roycroft Chamber Music Festival.

Thomas Kegler is an accomplished painter and art instructor from the Western New York area. His traditional oil paintings of landscapes, still life, and figures draw from the Masters’ approach to the canvas. From the local familiar hills of Western New York and the Catskills to the majestic mountains of Alaska and Oregon, the act of painting is an opportunity to recall moving personal experiences. Revisiting the processes and techniques of the Old Masters in light of classical and contemporary subjects guides his expression of life’s subtleties. Kegler has embraced and is enthused by the re-awakening and appreciation of “Traditional Realism” (“Classical Realism”, “Contemporary Realism” ) in the art community. Thomas is active presenting to groups, critiquing and judging shows, and organizing various art related events in New York.