Al and Ann Stohlman

Al Stohlman (August 15, 1919 – March 6, 1998) was a pioneer in leathercraft and continues to influence hundreds of thousands of leathercrafters worldwide. He and his wife Ann (June 30, 1924 – June 10, 2004) produced hundreds of magazine articles, doodle pages and other valuable tools still used in the leathercraft industry. A museum featuring much of his life's work is part of a collection of leather art located in the lobby of the Tandy Leather Factory Headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas.

Al Stohlman

Born in Olive, California, young Al Stohlman loved to draw and spent his spare time sketching animals of the Pacific Northwest. He hoped to one day be an illustrator in western books and magazines by authors like Zane Grey and Bret Harte. In 1939, Stohlman was called to serve in 46th Engineer Regiment of the Army during World War II. There, he used his artistic interest to create sketches of his activities in the South Pacific. While serving in New Guinea, he saw natives creating decorative designs in leather and became curious about exploring the art. He and a few friends used pocket knives to carve the leather and created rudimentary tools out of nails shaped into various forms. They also used India Ink to detail their work.

After 40 months serving in the Army, Stohlman was discharged and returned to civilian life. He moved to Laguna Canyon where he settled in a shack that he made from an abandon chicken coop. There he took care of horses and began earning income through his amateur leatherwork when he started purchasing plain saddles and decorating them to be sold at auction for a profit. He often got inspiration for his designs by attending rodeos and sketching other designers’ western art work.

He began working for the Chaps Leather Company with Guy Lauderback who initially taught him profession leatherworking on suitcases and other projects until he eventually worked his way up to building and designing on saddles. In 1952, he created a leather carving of a palomino wearing an ornate wooden saddle that attracted the attention of Dick McGann, owner of the Craftool Company. McGann hired Stohlman to design leatherworking tools and to write publications. Stohlman began earning national attention with his first book, “How To Carve Leather”.

In 1963, Al married Ann McDonald. The Stohlmans moved to Cache Creek, British Columbia in 1968, where they spent the next 29 years creating the bulk of their life’s work. The Stohlmans went on to publish a substantial catalog of texts about the fundamentals of leathercraft.

When asked what goes in to making a leather picture, Stohlman said, "More than anything else, it takes ideas. And being a realist, I feel a picture or scene must be authentic in detail, so it takes time. Lots of time."

The Al Stohlman Achievement Award is given annually to an artist whose accomplishments in leatherwork and dedication to the promotion of the craft follow the example set by Stohlman. Recipients of the medal are recognized on the basis of their overall achievements in leathercraft.

Ann Stohlman

Ann McDonald was visiting a friend’s cabin on a fishing trip when she attended a leatherworking demonstration Stohlman was doing at the property. The two were married in 1963 and she began learning the art of leatherwork by assisting her husband. Within 3 years, she had learned the trade and was making saddles herself. Ann became quite an accomplished leatherworker herself, collaborating on many of his books and having her work featured in a number of publications.