PRESQUE ISLE — Local artist Anne Hemphill is donating a Victorian-style table, handcrafted by local furniture maker Terry Kelly, to the Wintergreen Arts Center. The table will go up for auction at the Center during the opening reception of the Hemphill family’s First Friday art show from 6 to 8 p.m. on Jan. 5, 2018.
Ashland native Terry Kelly, well known for his custom made Shaker furniture and Windsor chairs, commissioned Hemphill to paint the table almost a decade ago. When Kelly was recently downsizing to move to southern Maine, he gifted the table to Hemphill.
“It was my first commissioned piece,” said Hemphill, a Presque Isle native and longtime admirer of Kelly’s furniture-making ability. “He paid me $250.00 for painting it, and as far as I know it is the only Victorian piece he made.”
The table will be on display at Wintergreen for the entire month of January. Bidding will continue at the Center and online at Wintergreen’s Facebook page, ending Jan. 31, 2018.
“We are deeply touched to receive such a generous and personally meaningful gift from Anne,” said Dottie Hutchins, Wintergreen’s executive director. “This beautiful table is a one-of-a-kind treasure, handmade and painted by two very talented local artisans. The person who wins the bid on this will own a piece of local history in the making.”
A silent auction will begin on January 5, 2018, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., during the opening reception of the First Friday Downtown Art Walk show. In January, Wintergreen is featuring the artistic creations of Presque Isle natives Anne and Jeff Hemphill, their granddaughter Megan Hemphill, and Jeff’s late father Frank Hemphill in a unique family-style show.
Refreshments will be served and the evening event is free and open to the public.
