Chris Kemler

Chris has been building and making his whole life. Growing up in a family of home builders, he learned the trades early and quickly. When Chris graduated from the University of Kansas in 2000, he bought himself a table saw as a graduation gift and began his journey into fine furniture and art. Chris started showing his work in 2010 at the Texas Furniture Makers show and won a Judges Special Award from Asa Christiana, then the editor of Fine Woodworking Magazine. The following year he won Best Contemporary at the same show and then a selection into Craft Texas Biannual after that.  Chris has also pursued a career as a project manager in the construction industry which took him to Las Vegas and Caesars Entertainment where he worked on high-profile projects like the first Hell’s Kitchen restaurant. (Yes, he has met Gordon Ramsay!) The corporate life was really taking away from his shop time, so Chris and his wife Marisela relocated to Las Cruces, New Mexico and is devoting his full time pursuing his woodworking and artistic passions.  More recently, Chris was invited to join the selective Border Artists group.  He has shown in many local galleries and had his first solo show entitled “Wood: Medium/Media” in October 2024.