photo by: Charley Forsyth

Charley Forsyth's "Greetings from Kansas" print.

Looking for a locally made gift this holiday season or for more information about nearby makers? The Journal-World spoke to five artists and craftspeople about their backgrounds and inspiration.

Charley Forsyth

Printmaker Charley Forsyth never received any formal art training. But about six years ago, he decided he wanted to put art out into the world, so he picked up a print making kit from Wonder Fair. Now, the West Middle School social studies teacher continues to make prints, which he sells at Wonder Fair and in the Kansas Statehouse in Topeka, among other locations.

Forsyth does linoleum block printing, a process that involves carving into linoleum and printing an impression of the carved surface onto paper. His most popular images include sunflowers, an image of James Naismith and a postcard-style image that says “Greetings from Kansas.”

photo by: Contributed Photo/Kayla Kohn

West Middle School teacher and local print-maker Charley Forsyth.

He said he likes that the art he makes is inexpensive enough that even a kid could buy it as a gift, but that it is also unique and handmade at the same time.

“I think the thing that I really liked … was the idea that somebody could have an original piece of art that wasn’t prohibitively expensive,” he said.

Forsyth has a website called charleyforsythart.com, and people can see his products for sale on his Etsy page: etsy.com/shop/seeforceart. His prices range from about $15 to $400.

Sarah Ngoh

Sarah Ngoh started making earrings seven years ago because she could never find any that she liked.

“I just started making them for myself,” she said. But two years later, Ngoh was up and running with an Etsy site, and now her items can be found at Third Planet.

photo by: Contributed Photo/Sarah Ngoh

Sarah Ngoh is pictured with her earrings

Ngoh is an English lecturer at the University of Kansas and an activist, and her interests are reflected in her jewelry. She makes large earrings with images of famous African Americans, queer people or women. Many are writers and activists themselves. Ngoh said she has always liked big earrings, and that she wanted her pieces to be conversation starters.

If someone asks about the person on the earrings, “then I get to share with them about an important historical figure, and that’s always really fun,” she said.

photo by: Contributed Photo/Sarah Ngoh

Earrings created by Sarah Ngoh feature Martin Luther King Jr.

In addition to making earrings, Ngoh also makes coasters and magnets. The earrings range from $11 to $16, the magnets are around $9 and the coaster sets range from $15 to $25. Ngoh said her most popular items are her Black Lives Matter and Trans Lives Matter earrings, as well as earrings that feature Nina Simone, James Baldwin and John Brown. Ngoh also does custom earrings.

“I like making things that look interesting or that look nice, and I get a lot of pleasure out of making something for people that they really love,” Ngoh said. “It’s a great outlet. I have always been into art and crafts … It’s sort of like therapy for me.”

Ngoh’s products can be found on Etsy at etsy.com/shop/GetYourFleekOn. She can also be reached via her Facebook page: facebook.com/getyourfleekon.

Darin White

Character is what Darin White looks for in wood, not perfection.

The Lawrence artist creates functional art such as charcuterie boards, hand-carved organic bowls and tables. White studied sculpting in college at the University of Kansas but has experimented with all kinds of art. He was making fine art for a time but found more success selling functional art.

photo by: Contributed Photo/Shannon White

Darin White is a functional artist who creates charcuterie boards, hand carved organic bowls and tables, among other items.

Years ago, he made a serving board for his wife for Christmas. It led to numerous people asking White to make one for them, and “it’s went from there,” he said. White and his wife own HAVA Studios in Lawrence, where they make custom products and do some art consulting.

White said he likes the whole process of his artwork. He enjoys making something valuable out of wood that would have been considered waste.

“I actually reclaim trees and then I’ll slab them out,” he said. “A lot of the wood I’m using would have been thrown away.”

White describes the wood he uses as having a certain character unlike what you’d find in items purchased from a brand-name store.

photo by: Contributed Photo/Darin White

A hand carved organic serving bowl created by Darin White.

“They are looking for perfection, and I’m looking for the character in the wood,” he said.

White’s artwork can be viewed on Facebook at facebook.com/darinmwhiteartist or on Custom Made at custommade.com/by/darinwhite. His pieces typically are $150 or more.

Bailey Kivett

Bailey Kivett strives to make meaningful jewelry — the kind that customers will never want to take off.

Kivett uses sterling silver as her medium and a jeweler’s saw to create intricate images. Most of her pieces are place-oriented or include a kind phrase. She also does custom commissions, including transforming children’s artwork into jewelry.

photo by: Contributed Photo/Bailey Kivett

Local jewelry maker Bailey Kivett is also an art teacher within the Lawrence school district.

In times when Kivett was able to meet with her customers face-to-face, she said there was often a moment when the person would cheer or gasp because they had just found the “most perfect piece of jewelry for a friend or for themselves.”

“That’s what I keep making jewelry for,” Kivett said. “The idea that it can be just right for a person.”

photo by: Contributed Photo/Bailey Kivett

A sterling silver jewelry piece by Bailey Kivett is based on a child’s drawing.

Kivett is an art teacher with the Lawrence School District and has been making jewelry her whole life. She said she got serious about it when she was just 8 years old. She went to the University of Kansas to study to become an art teacher but, after taking a jewelry class, added a bachelor of fine arts with an emphasis in metal.

Kivett’s most popular pieces include state necklaces and bangles or necklaces that have a kind phrase on them. Her website is dulcesjewelry.com and her Etsy store is etsy.com/shop/baykivo. Her pieces range from about $35 to $150 for some custom pieces.

Alicia Kelly

Local artist Alicia Kelly is a trained screen printer whose love of paper led her to the path of paper-cutting and paper sculpting.

Her intricate paper-cut work creates a “multi-layered conversation” within her creations, which also feature textures, shadows and a simple color palette, according to her website.

photo by: Contributed Photo/Alicia Kelly

Screen printer and paper-cutter Alicia Kelly is pictured in her studio.

“Imagining paper as a living creature, I allow the material to twist, bunch and breathe in a way that is most natural to itself — recognizing both the strength and delicacy in its fibers,” her website reads.

In an interview with the Journal-World, Kelly said she enjoys paper cutting because it’s her meditation.

“It’s not always about the product, but the process,” she said.

photo by: Contributed Photo/Alicia Kelly

Alicia Kelly’s cut paper artwork “Fragile Minds for Fragile Times.”

Kelly has lived in Lawrence on and off for about 15 years, and is currently an instructor at the Lawrence Arts Center and Van Go. In addition to her paper-cutting pieces, she also is a printmaker. She said one of the most popular things she sells during the holiday season are her moon calendars, which are $15 plus shipping costs. Her paper-cut work typically ranges from $150 to $1,000.

Kelly’s website is aliciakellyart.com.