Art comes out of the woodwork in local show

(Sentinel photo by Amy Erickson) John A. Adair, a woodworker in Remsen, refinished this desk that was built by his great-great grandfather. The desk is on display in the "Around Town" exhibit at the Le Mars Arts Center. Adair is one of six artists with work featured in the exhibit. [Click to enlarge]

Joshua T. Adair fashioned a wooden desk in the 1830s.

His great-great grandson John A. Adair restored the piece, which is currently featured in the "Around Town" exhibit at the Le Mars Arts Center.

"I think he had that while he was a magistrate," John said. "He used the desk to do his work."

(Sentinel photo by Amy Erickson) Tracy Jackson, a Le Mars artist, has drawings such as this one on display in the "Around Town" exhibit at the Le Mars Arts Center. Jackson's piece is joined by work from five other area artists. [Click to enlarge]

John came to own the desk after it had passed down through the generations.

The "Around Town" exhibit also features Le Mars artists Tracy Jackson's colorful, detailed enchanted world drawings, Janet Kreikemeier's caricatures, Cathy Krommenhoek's painted signs, T.J. Templeton's oil paintings and Stacy Kramer's photographs and graphic art.

Kathy Moore, Arts Center executive director, said the artists featured in this month's exhibit are unique, but are just the "tip of the iceberg" of those around town.

"They're artists who have used artwork related to their businesses," Moore said. "Art isn't just something hanging on the wall."

Like John's desk.

It needed a lot of work but John, a woodworker by trade in Remsen, brought it back to life.

"Some of the parts were so brittle," John said. "The fibers of the wood were powder."

Not only is the desk itself a part of the Adair family's history, but what John found inside is also a treasured memory of his dad who died in 1993.

"When I tore the desk apart I found a picture of my father in his Navy uniform," John said. "It slid into a seam between the cubby holes and the actual frame of the desk."

The public will have a chance to attend the "Meet the Artists" event from 1-3 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 27, which is also the last day of the exhibit.