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Coming from a long line of artists and craftspeople, it is not surprising that Jonathan Benson became one, too. But it didn't happen automatically.

When Benson graduated from high school in Ames, Iowa, in 1976, he became a self-described "wanderer," and eventually found himself in Santa Fe, where he took a job in a Santa Fe furniture shop, making Taos-style furniture.

The shop closed within a couple of years, but Benson was smitten. He realized that if he wanted to be a real artist and craftsman, he would need more education. That drive to learn took him through a bachelor's degree in art at Iowa State University and a master's degree in furniture design from the Rhode Island School of Design, plus several years refining his craft on the East Coast.

But it took until 1999 before he and his family would come back to Santa Fe. That very year the Tri-Area Association for Economic Development, or TRADE, was starting a woodworkers' guild, with a serendipitous result for both TRADE and Benson.

Founded in 1983, TRADE is a private, nonprofit economic development corporation that works with existing businesses in Santa Fe, Rio Arriba and Los Alamos counties and with the pueblos. Its role is to "help the businesses remain and grow through assistance with market expansion, ties to financing, and generally improved business practices."

According to Executive Director Lisa Cochrun, the organization seeks to diversify the economy; create high quality, stable jobs using the full range of local talent; and "promote a broader business base for the region's arts, agricultural and traditional communities."

Bringing the woodworkers together was a logical move for TRADE.  As Cochrun puts it:  "TRADE doesn't duplicate. This economic area—promoting handmade wood furniture and home furnishings made in Northern New Mexico—was targeted for growth in the region, and no one else was doing it."

Getting involved in the project was a logical move for Benson, too, who knew that simply making beautiful furniture without a business structure behind him would mean making no money and merely "subsidizing people's furniture collections."

The partnership between TRADE and its some 200 woodworking businesses, says Cochrun, is based on the concept of supporting the local economy, using local woods where possible, teaching at local schools and buying from local vendors.

The woodworkers need maximum shop time, note Benson and Cochrun ("If you're not making sawdust, you're not making money," they say), so the creation of a network allows for joint access to "peer networking, marketing, professional development, and the creation of gallery/retail outlets."

"Jon is a remarkably talented guy, but he's also a serious businessman," says Cochrun, but like so many artists and craftspeople, business is not his background, so the education continues. However, Benson says, he comes with something others do not: his wife, Sherry Wise, who has a doctorate in economics, and has joined TRADE efforts in working on business and marketing plans, and beginning to design workshops for members.

Benson creates one-of-a-kind pieces for the "custom furniture" niche, "incorporating bent laminations of the finest veneers available and turned burls from throughout North America." His influences "range from Art Deco, Art Nouveau and Futurist painting to Southwest art and the natural world."

Working with TRADE, he helped set up and exhibit at Sanbusco in 1999, where he did demonstrations in addition to showing his furniture. From there he got commissions and a job teaching at the Santa Fe Community College.

Benson wants to hire more people in his shop so he can do more designing and exhibitions (he currently shows at Shidoni), do more commissions and continue teaching. As he moves forward, he will have the support and guidance of TRADE and the Woodworkers Guild.

Cochrun, like a proud mom, sees the guild, just two years out, already moving toward self-sustainability, as members take on various administrative and infrastructure responsibilities.  TRADE, she says, "will continue to do things that individuals can't do," such as marketing, an ad campaign and a Web page.