Getting a handle on our tools

Owen, It was going so well, why did you have to go and mess up my argument? :)

A.R. or not, your shop made tools are beautiful, truly works of _legitimate art.

Turn to Safety, Arch Fortiter

"Arch" wrote: (clip) your shop made tools are beautiful, truly works of_legitimate art. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ I agree they are beautiful. But, does that make them art? I say yes. But, Arch, that is a whole 'nother discussion. (Which I think we've been over before.)

...and to add insult to injury, Owen photographed those beauties on the bed of his new Oneway. What, me jealous!

Turn to Safety, Arch Fortiter

===>But Arch, that can't be a real lathe! No drips, drops, dust, dings! It is probably a Photoshop creation! Who you trying to kid, Owen? *G*

Leif

Owen - that's sick. :-)

I use whatever is straight and on top of the firewood pile. In my neck of the woods, that is usually eucalyptus. No finish, but I do typically cut three grooves in the butt end for a bit of flash.

Joe Fleming - San Diego.

Well... I did PhotoShop the dust off a number of areas as well as removed the drywall screws in the background. Not because I had to, but because I could. :-)

Give me time for the drips, drops, dust and dings - it's only bean 2 weeks fercryinoutloud!

Hey, po' folks got po' ways - and the others? Well......

And big dogs? Well..... 'Scuse me, I have to get back to the porch.

TomNie :)

My inspiration in making these this fancy is in part my appreciation of H.O Studley's legacy. Perhaps some of my future mini-tool handles should include little bone inlays or compartments of some sort to hold some doodad.

Nothing wrong with that - all of the other handles I've made are from scraps, though I've never used a complete branch section like the Austrian world-record bowl guys.

Thanks Arch and Leo. Not art in my opinion. Good craftsmanship perhaps but not art.

Yes, Leo, we've been over this before. Over and over. But every now and then I mull the opinions I've read here and in print publications, trying to solidify my own opinions and come to a firmer stand on how I define Art. The more I think about Art vs. Craft with respect to woodturning, I'm coming to the belief that 99.9% of what I see and

Jim Christiansen's work of late seems to fit the Art label though: (I was actually looking for a link to the piece to the back and right of this one. It's got 3 human figures holding the box on their shoulders.

And in collaboration with Garrit Van Ness:

For me, these two pieces elicit an emotional response above and beyond any prettiness to the wood or appreciation of technique. I want to know the story of the artist's intention. I want to study them further to see what they are "saying" to me. I don't get this desire with other turnings I view - especially my mini-tool handles.

How could it be said better. The examples save a thousand words and establish the difference of craft = 1 and art = 10. The viewer can decide if that's ascending or descending order. Good post, Owen.

TomNie