Mel Jacobson on wed 8 apr 98
tools, my god, what a concept. tools, the love affair of every craftsperson.
we are lucky as potters , for the first and foremost tool is the human hand.
but, the siren call of tools still sings in our ears.
old tools, new tools, brushes, old and new, expensive and cheap..worn
and slippery, shaggy and broken down...but we are used to them, they work
in our hands.
there is not a perfect, one size fits all tool for anyone...we have to feel
it, hold it, use it.......find it, but when we do, and it is perfect.....oh
my god, don't ever break it or lose it, or worst of all, have it stolen.
(i had 35 old brushes stolen from my locker at the Univ. of Minnesota.
just a couple of years ago. i really did cry. could not replace them. it
was like having all the photos of my grandchildren stolen.)
when i worked for uchida in japan, we wrapped cotton fabric around our
metal trimming tools, then bound them with cotton string...it was so nice
to feel those tools in our hands when we would have to trim hundreds of
pots all day long.
i can remember my grandmother `darning`...fixing socks, clothing, she had
an egg shaped tool with a handle that dropped into a sock, it was smooth,
old, worn....it was beautiful.
only work, age, time can give tools the patina of beauty. new tools have a
rough edge that does not feel right, they have to be `broken in`.
tools that you have purchased, tools you have made, found, borrowed, they
all have a feel and a use that only you can determine.
no other person in the world can tell you what is correct, right or perfect
for you...you must discover that tool by work, time and energy.
we are lucky. we use tools. it is a gift.
mel/mn
http://www.pclink.com/melpots
John H. Rodgers on thu 9 apr 98
-- [ From: John H. Rodgers * EMC.Ver #2.5.02 ] --
I'm with you Mel!
I have some wierd tools that have taken 35 years to wear in so they are
just right.They are an extension of my hand as surely as my fingers.
Wouldn't trade gold nuggets for them. Won't live another 35 years to wear in
a replacement set.
May God bless and protect a potter and his tools!
John Rodgers in Alabama
-------- REPLY, Original message follows --------
Date: Wednesday, 08-Apr-98 12:18 PM
From: Mel Jacobson \ Internet: (melpots@pclink.com)
To: Clayart \ Internet: (clayart@lsv.uky.edu)
Subject: tools again
----------------------------Original message----------------------------
tools, my god, what a concept. tools, the love affair of every
craftsperson.
we are lucky as potters , for the first and foremost tool is the human hand.
but, the siren call of tools still sings in our ears.
old tools, new tools, brushes, old and new, expensive and cheap..worn and
slippery, shaggy and broken down...but we are used to them, they work in our
hands.
there is not a perfect, one size fits all tool for anyone...we have to feel
it, hold it, use it.......find it, but when we do, and it is perfect.....oh
my god, don't ever break it or lose it, or worst of all, have it stolen.
(i had 35 old brushes stolen from my locker at the Univ. of Minnesota. just
a couple of years ago. i really did cry. could not replace them. it was
like having all the photos of my grandchildren stolen.)
when i worked for uchida in japan, we wrapped cotton fabric around our metal
trimming tools, then bound them with cotton string...it was so nice to feel
those tools in our hands when we would have to trim hundreds of pots all day
long.
i can remember my grandmother `darning`...fixing socks, clothing, she had an
egg shaped tool with a handle that dropped into a sock, it was smooth, old,
worn....it was beautiful.
only work, age, time can give tools the patina of beauty. new tools have a
rough edge that does not feel right, they have to be `broken in`.
tools that you have purchased, tools you have made, found, borrowed, they
all have a feel and a use that only you can determine.
no other person in the world can tell you what is correct, right or perfect
for you...you must discover that tool by work, time and energy.
we are lucky. we use tools. it is a gift.
mel/mn http://www.pclink.com/melpots
-------- REPLY, End of original message --------
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