The magazine for alumni and friends of the UB School of Management
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Autumn 2018 Buffalo Business 19 It all started with a birdhouse. For Jerry Newman, SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor Emeritus, his love of woodworking began three decades ago with a simple birdhouse, though he didn't seriously take up the hobby until he began considering retirement. By the time he retired from the School of Management, Newman had a basic set of tools, including a table saw, scroll saw and band saw. He started by making simple breadboards for family and friends, and eventually branched out to more intricate designs and other projects, like cheese cutters. "Then my daughter said, 'Would you build me a dining room table?'" Newman recalls. "That's a leap up from a breadboard, believe me." Aer a bit of trial and error, Newman successfully built her a table and has continued to expand his repertoire — and workshop — from there. In his daugh- ter's house, you'll find several "Newman originals," including a library table, end table and hutch. And in Newman's own home and garden, you'll find several pieces that showcase his woodworking skills and his newest passion: stained glass. Two years ago, he approached Sister Ann Therese Kelly, a renowned stained glass artist, and asked her to teach him her cra. Since then, he's also learned how to create fused glass and has made several framed art pieces for his garden, along with a beautiful water feature that includes two wooden planters and a waterfall that runs over a stained glass depiction of a lighthouse and beach scene. "I've always been creative, even in the subjects I chose for my research," Newman says. "But I've never been a patient person — that's one reason I was a good teacher. If I was boring myself, I'd do something differently to engage my stu- dents. Through woodworking, I've become more patient." Newman's latest project is a dining room table for his sister, who lives in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee. Made from cherry, redheart and wenge, the table will feature a cutout in the center, where Newman will insert a stained glass piece depicting a mountain sunset in vibrant shades of red, orange and yellow. The art will be backlit by LED lights mounted like candy dots on a strip underneath the glass, a device he's working on with another local crasman. "This is my magnum opus," Newman says. "And I think she's going to like it — that's most important to me." x — Matthew Biddle Against the grain Newman holds the stained glass art that will go in his sister's table. Below, a hutch and dining room table he created for his daughter. Photos: Tom Wolf