A.L. Swanson was born in Portland, Maine in 1970. He grew up in a small farming community along with five siblings. After studying business at the University of Maine and agronomy at Rutgers University, Al decided to fine tune his hidden talent and love for woodworking. He apprenticed under several elite cabinetmakers in Maine until the lure of wide open spaces brought him to Montana in June of 2000.

It didn’t take long for the Montana community to welcome his fresh creative style—”Neo-Shaker” as Al calls it—and business boomed. The desire for people to really experience his work—touch the pieces, try them out, smell the natural finishes and imagine living with finely crafted pieces led Al to open the A.L. Swanson Gallery in downtown Helena in 2004. It was a natural transition as a showro