The League of New Hampshire Craftsmen’s annual ornament for 2015 is Sweet Season, a cast and hand-formed pewter maple sugar tree adorned with a sap bucket.
Kristine Lane of Andover and Paulette Werger, both juried in metal by the League, created this ornament to celebrate New Hampshire’s spring-time tradition of maple sugaring. Sweet Season ornaments are sold exclusively by the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen Fine Craft Galleries, the League’s online store at NHcrafts.org, and at the Annual League of New Hampshire Craftsmen’s Fair, August 1 to 9.
Each ornament is numbered as one of a limited edition and is signed by the artists. The ornament comes beautifully gift-boxed and sells for $25.
Sweet Season is the League’s 28th annual ornament. “The League’s annual ornament is a great gift and is a popular collectible item,” said Susie Lowe-Stockwell, executive director of the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen.
Kristine Lane explains the inspiration for the ornament. “Each year on country roads all over our state, a unique and truly iconic New Hampshire image appears. Majestic sugar maple trees are tapped and adorned with buckets to collect the sweet sap that will produce our famous maple syrup.” She and Werger collaborated on two other ornaments for the League and have also worked together creating one-of-a-kind jewelry. They also share a love of nature. “My jewelry reflects my passion for the graceful forms found in nature,” says Lane. Werger creates works of subtle design and intriguing shapes inspired by botanical forms in her garden.
About the Makers
Kristine Lane of Andover has been working as a studio jeweler for more than 20 years. She studied painting, drawing, and sculpture at Boston University’s two-year Fine Art Core Program, and then discovered a connection to metalsmithing while pursuing a bachelor of fine arts degree in jewelry design at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. “I was hooked instantly to the inherent strength of metal and the associated challenges of working and manipulating it to create delicate forms,” said Lane. She enjoys every aspect of creating a piece of jewelry, from design stage to fabrication. “However, there is no greater gratification in metalsmithing than being told that one of my designs has become a client’s favorite piece of jewelry,” she added.
Paulette Werger of Hanover makes jewelry, vessels, and flatware that draw upon botanical imagery, mythology, and folk tales. Her neckpieces, rings, earrings, and beads combine a variety of materials including gold, silver, pewter, hand-cut gems, and pearls.
Paulette received her B.S. in painting and sculpture from the College of Saint Rose and Skidmore College, and her M.F.A. in Art Metal from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She exhibits and sells her work both nationally and internationally and teaches workshops in jewelry making and metalsmithing techniques.
Her studio, Metalpeople East, is located in Lebanon. She serves on the Boards of Trustees for the Society of Arts and Crafts in Boston, Massachusetts and for the Alliance for the Visual Arts in Lebanon.
About the Annual Ornament
The League’s annual ornament is selected by the managers of the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen Fine Craft Galleries, located in Center Sandwich, Concord, Hanover, Hooksett, Littleton, Meredith, Nashua, and North Conway. Major credit cards are accepted for ordering the ornament by telephone from any gallery.