Ceramic Artist, Woodworking Pair, Ornamental Painter

In Twin Falls, Id., Dave LaMure, Jr., conjures up timeless images as he combines fire and clay to create pottery. He creates a lamp that begins as a humble lump of clay. At the wheel, he throws over 30 pounds of clay into a vessel-shaped body, making an impression of an antler as it goes into the kiln. With one firing behind him, LaMure sketches and glazes a scene inspired by the animal kingdom. He places the vessel into a trashcan filled with sawdust and lights it on fire, a firing process called Raku. The brilliant colors are embellished further as he attaches the naturally shed antler onto the body of the finished lamp.

Iowan Woodworkers Allen Chadwick and Brian Bergstrom

Allen Chadwick and Brian Bergstrom build furniture that make people do a double take. One of them is form while the other is function, a combination that produces simple contemporary designs. In their Des Moines studio, they build a chaise lounge custom fit for a client.

Pennsylvanian Painted Bill Russell

Philadelphia artist Bill Russell uses a conservative rainbow of color as a canvas, on which he paints exciting layers of texture and depth. Inspired by German painted furniture, Russell went back to school to learn decorative vinegar painting, a process that allows light to pass through color. He works on a small end table that will have a golden base color with Prussian blue and magenta accents.