Musing about wood going round and round. Where it stops nobodyknows!
 

As my contribution to the NAAWP (National Association for the
advancement of woodturning people), I've been fishing instead of turning
lately, but I did muse about our craft while casting my old Creek Chub
floater, retrieving my Heddon darter or jigging a mirrorlure. After a
wee scotch, soup, and supper, I've been enjoying a look at "500 Bowls"
and "500 Wood bowls" for the umpteenth time.

A very few of you might remember an old 30's pop song, "You push the
middle valve down and the music goes round and round --yo ho, wo ho--
and it comes out here" (I doubt you need Jeffry to explain, Leo). The
music that comes out sure has changed over the years and so have the
turnings that come out of another instrument; the woodturning lathe.
In so many ways the turnings are better now, certainly not worse, but
they are different.
There were signs and guides along the way. Prestini started it and Pain
wrote and taught us about it. Stocksdale continued it with good design
and delicate form. Lindquist engineered beauty on a shopsmith. Moulthrop
added big bowls with bigger mouths. Ellsworth amazed us with hollow
forms and tiny mouths. Osolnik preserved our sanity and Jordan keeps our
turnings beautiful while still recognizable. There were and are, many
other giants with broad shoulders for us to stand on. Of course, the
narrow ones we fall off from are always with us.

The woodturner has a superb machine for making unmoldable wood round
while the potter employs a plastic medium to mold all kinds of fluid
shapes. I guess it's the eternal challenge and all that, but there
seemed to be more rounded & contained ceramic bowls and more fenestrated
and unrestrained wood bowls pictured in the two books than I expected.

Somehow this woodturner related more to the clay throwings than to the
wood turnings. I hope this doesn't come over as a red-neck's loutish
attempt to put-down those wonderful variations of the wood bowl. Anyway,
the title is "500 Wood Bowls", not "500 _Turned_ Wood Bowls". However
for me, the ceramics did seem to be comfortably traditional, more
contained and somewhat rounder. I suppose that contemporary wood art
often strives to stress the beholder, but this isn't always a metaphor
for excellence.

As with nature, rcw abhors a vacuum, so please comment; adverse or
otherwise.


Turn to Safety, Arch
Fortiter



http://community.webtv.net/almcc/MacsMusings

Musing about wood going round and round. Where it stops nobodyknows!
 

"Arch" wrote in message
...
As my contribution to the NAAWP (National Association for the
advancement of woodturning people), I've been fishing instead of turning
lately, but I did muse about our craft while casting my old Creek Chub
floater, retrieving my Heddon darter or jigging a mirrorlure. After a
wee scotch, soup, and supper, I've been enjoying a look at "500 Bowls"
and "500 Wood bowls" for the umpteenth time.


If you enjoy fishing, go ahead with what you've got. If you enjoy catching
fish, gotta get these.
http://www.basspro.com/servlet/catal...=SearchResults

Best topwater bait out there. Also made of wood. NB - do _not_ cast one
around for bass in a lake with muskie. What they do to a wooden lure would
take 60 grit to fix.

Divers work great, too, but they're not made of wood.

Musing about wood going round and round. Where it stops nobody knows!
 

Arch wrote:

SNIP

I hope this doesn't come over as a red-neck's loutish
attempt to put-down those wonderful variations of the wood bowl.

Not at all. Not one bit to me. I think it is important to look around
and smell the roses, not just the sawdust.

Ceramics, china, porcelain, pottery.... they all have a fascination to
me. And the variations on the medium itself and the objects made are
just fantastic.

It took today's modern machines to make woodturning what it is today.
I agree with Peter Childs and Ellsworth, that the real change in
turning started about 25 or so years ago. And in relation to centuries
of woodturning, 1/8 thick walled vases are brand new. In ceramics, I
have held a 200 year old cup that had walls of about 3/32" and a tiny
little handle with a equally thin saucer to match.

I always wanted to take a pottery class, but never found the time.
Every country had their own methods, and some are radically different
in design and finish. I think if you started down that slope you would
be in even more trouble that when you get hooked on woodturning.

On second thought, I think I should stick with grinding wood.

Robert

Musing about wood going round and round. Where it stops nobodyknows!
 

" Somehow this woodturner related more to the clay throwings than to the
wood turnings. I hope this doesn't come over as a red-neck's loutish
attempt to put-down those wonderful variations of the wood bowl. Anyway,
the title is "500 Wood Bowls", not "500 _Turned_ Wood Bowls". However
for me, the ceramics did seem to be comfortably traditional, more
contained and somewhat rounder. I suppose that contemporary wood art
often strives to stress the beholder, but this isn't always a metaphor
for excellence.
Arch,
I started thinking just wood - sanded and finished wood.
As I see more and more of the embellishments I find myself appreciating them
for their unique beauty and less consideration of the wood aspect.
So, I guess I'm saying I still love wood but I'm not the purist I first was.
Beautiful is beauty regardless of the medium.

I also get intrigued trying to figure out HOW they do some of that stuff.
Example, is the bowl on the cover of "500 Wood Bowls" done by an Australian
fellow and I haven't been able to find out much about him - GOOGLE or
otherwise. If all he did was carve it then he's one helluva carver!

TomNie