Martin Goebel, master furniture maker and winner of multiple awards and honors, including several from the Woodworking Network, may have earned his finest honors with the announcement that his work has been selected for display at the 2026 Smithsonian Craft Show in Washington D.C. this April 23 - 26.

"As 2026 begins," said Goebel, owner of St. Louis-based Goebel & Co. Furniture. "I’m grateful to share some meaningful news. This April, I’ve been invited to exhibit work in the Smithsonian at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC— for the country’s premier exhibition of American craft."

The show unites 120 artisans, selected by a jury of museum curators, from nearly 2,000 applicants working at the highest level of contemporary American craft across a range of disciplines, he said in a letter to admirers of his work and produced by  his company. 

"We were selected to be one of the 120 exhibitors in the Smithsonian show of American craft this April. The show spans all of the traditional craft mediums of the 120 maybe four or five our furniture makers All of which working within dramatically different genres."

The Smithsonian Craft Show is the country's premier showcase for the finest in hand-crafted, American artisanal works. Each year, a new trio of experts is selected by the Show chairs to review hundreds of applications and select the year's featured exhibitors representing all facets of contemporary craft and design, including basketry, ceramics, decorative fiber, furniture, glass, jewelry, leather, metal, mixed media, paper, wearable art, and wood.

Goebel told St. Louis magazine that he plans to show a total of five pieces: a round table for 4 to 6 people in solid zebrawood; a play on steamer trunks; and prototypes he’s been working on at his manufacturing facility in North St. Louis. The steamer trunk, says Goebel, will function like a wardrobe. “It’s one of those things that a lot of designers and artisans have really used, over the years, to show their skill set through attention to detail,” the magazine reported. "The table, with a mother of pearl inlay, will feature brass accents and a sunburst veneer. The finish, a French polish in which ultra-fine layers are rubbed on and sanded away to almost nothing, leaves “beautiful depth and a buttery texture,” he says.