Canterbury master furniture maker David Lamb has been named N.H. Artist Laureate. Lamb was nominated by Governor John Lynch and confirmed by the Executive Council. He will serve in this position through March 2014.

Born in New Hampshire, Lamb grew up at Canterbury Shaker Village, where he was apprenticed to Master European cabinetmaker Alejandro de la Cruz, who taught him that being a craftsman is a lifelong commitment. Throughout the years he has developed his craft, incorporating various period forms, Shaker sensibilities, classic re-interpretation and contemporary styles into his work.

Lamb is a founding member of New Hampshire Furniture Masters Association, a group of furniture makers dedicated to producing handmade furniture of unsurpassed quality in a variety of styles while cultivating awareness of both their work and of N.H.’s furniture-making traditions. Lamb’s work has won numerous design awards and has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, Traditional Home Magazine, the New York Times and N.H. Home Magazine, as well as on N.H. Chronicle, N.H. Outlook and others.

Lamb hopes to use his position as Artist Laureate to promote New Hampshire’s fine arts and crafts industry, our legacy of craftsmanship and the supportive environment for self-employed artists in the state. “People talk about ‘the New Hampshire Advantage,” says Lamb. “The arts and crafts in New Hampshire are a huge part of that. New Hampshire is tradition; we hold on to what’s important. The U.S. looks to New England, and then to New Hampshire, for what’s important when it comes to traditional crafts.”

"David Lamb is a talented artist whose contributions have enriched the New Hampshire arts community," commented Governor Lynch. "We are fortunate to have David serve as artist laureate where he will have the opportunity to enrich the lives of others both through his art and also as a mentor to our state's emerging artists."

Lamb is the state's fifth artist laureate. Click here to visit his web site.

The New Hampshire State Council on the Arts recommends several artists' names to the Governor every two years. The Governor then selects one to honor as artist laureate.