The Bowdoin College Museum of Art is delighted to add Lynette Breton's "Ancestral Table" to our permanent collection. A significant example of twentieth-century American craft traditions, it is beautifully designed and constructed. It will contribute in meaningful ways to our small, but distinguished holdings of American furniture. We thank her for generously offering it as a gift to the Museum on behalf of its owner.
Laura F. Sprague, Senior Consulting Curator
Bowdoin College Museum of Art
Brunswick, Maine
I met Lynette Breton in 1983 when we were both about 30 years old. As women uniquely passionate about woodworking, we formed Breton-Flannery Woodworks in 1985. Over 11 years, as a team of two, and at times up to 4 employees, we produced a portfolio of very fine work. Lynette's role at Breton-Flannery Woodworks and her continued expertise include marketing, design, and engineering, along with impeccable execution of beautiful woodwork. Lynette has a design style that is sensitive and timeless. I know of no finer craftsperson. Working with Lynette as either colleague or client has always been an inspiring and rewarding experience.
Ann Flannery, woodworker, boat builder, & yoga teacher
Cundy's Harbor, Maine
Lynette was one of my teachers 20 years ago when I was first beginning my woodworking career. Having her guidance at that point was immensely important to me. As a young maker, the quality of Lynette’s work blew me away. It took me a number of years of working on my own to fully understand how excellent her work is on so many levels.
Lynette’s vast understanding and love of the material she works with has always stood out to me. She has the rare skill to weave her beautiful design ideas harmoniously with the natural material she chooses to create objects that transcend the sum of their parts.
As my teacher, her influence and insistence on excellence in craftsmanship has always stuck with me. I would often envy the depth of knowledge and mastery of technique that she possesses in so many areas of woodworking. But what stands out and lingers with me most when I think of Lynette as my teacher and see her work is her warmth of spirit, the care for her students, and her good humor through it all.
Tim Rousseau, furniture maker, author for “Fine Woodworking”, & head instructor at the Center For Furniture Craftsmanship
Appleton, Maine
Lynette Breton is one of the most skilled and passionate woodworkers I have ever known. I was the Director of the Furniture Design Program at Anderson Ranch Arts Center in Snowmass Village, Colorado from 2002 until 2009, and have worked with thousands of woodworkers, many of them quite renowned. Lynette is truly one of the masters of this craft, with a rare sensitivity to materials and a refined sense of design. Lynette is also a remarkable teacher. She is a very creative instructor, generous with her knowledge, well-organized, enthusiastic, and inspiring.
Lynette’s openhearted approach to life makes her a joy to know and a pleasure to work with, whether client, collaborator, student, or friend.
Susan Working, Curator
The Randall Museum
San Francisco, California
Over the span of about 10 years, my partner and I had the great gift of working closely with Lynette on several projects: she designed and built some beautiful free-standing furniture pieces for us, designed all of the built-in cabinets in our new home, and designed and built the desk/cabinetry in my office. She was thoughtful, creative, and cooperative in her design work, weaving our needs and vision together with her years of experience and knowledge. Her craftsmanship with wood is exquisite, and the results are beautiful and timeless. She brings to every project a love of her craft and a reverence for wood and the creative process that are a joy to experience.
W.W., Maine
I believe that trees hold stories by gathering the energy of the Earth, and from that energy grows the tree's story. It takes someone capable and sensitive enough to be able to hear that story and transform the tree into its true, new essence. That ability is what Lynette Breton brings to all her work.
S.E. King, New Jersey
I am delighted to write on behalf of Lynette Breton's two-dimensional collages. Lynette has brought to these intricate, nature-inspired compositions her vast knowledge of the natural world, her reverence for and admiration of it, and her amazing skills and refinement as a maker. These are compositions of intrigue and beauty, and I am delighted to own one and see it everyday in my home.
Rose Marasco, Visual Artist & Distinguished Professor Emerita of Art
Some thoughts on working with Lynette:
As a visual artist, I believe our non-verbal language is the most primal, though perhaps least-recognized in our culture, and one of our most powerful and authentic forms of emotion, spirit, and oneness. I have been blessed to have worked on this premise with Lynette Breton in her Circles of Song and Voice and as a co-teacher.
Lynette introduces the idea of authentic voice in a way that provides enough structure to allow everyone, whether starting out or experienced, the freedom to explore. She may start with a picture or object to ground us, then lead us through to discover our own sounds, and then encourage a co-listening that creates something bigger than all of us!
Lynette recognizes the richness of all manner of sounds and has inspired me to listen with more awareness. This has become a habit that has enriched my life with surprise, stillness, comfort, and release.
Liz Moberg, Visual Artist
South Portland, Maine
A few summers back, when putting together an art retreat, I asked Lynette to lead a Singing Circle as part of the week-long workshop. Having never sung with a group or in front of anyone since grade school, I hesitated to participate, but Lynette's generous, inclusive style of guiding us was a perfect beginning to each morning—and the beginning of my own enjoyment of singing.
Marie Locke, decorative painter
South Portland, Maine
Taking a class with Lynette is like taking a deep dive into yourself. No matter what the material, her intuitive wisdom and generous heart meet you, gently guiding you to new experiences, new skills, new places within.
Jerielle Young
Mere Point, Maine