2 00 9 Vol. 2 Iss ue 3 A r ti s ans Quar t erly Rev i ew Artisans Quarterly Review H A N D C R A F T E D C U S T O M W O O D W O R K I N G A n n o u n c i n g t h e E d i t o r ’ s 2009 Phase III Editor’s Blog Its About Time for TV! Sustainable Furniture Wood Porn The Kayaking Commissioner Klise Mfg gets FSC Certified Finishing Artemis Chip Chats Feature; Safari Chest Revitalizing Golden Oak Kim’s Picks Slide Popularity Green Market Day The Solar Tree Project Green Sawing Framing Papers Finished! Sticking to Home Schooling Blog Topics This is where I generally ramble about what’s coming. What’s interesting is this quarter’s ramble proclaims the coming of more rambling! Artisans now has a new place to ramble, babble, complain, explain, exclaim, announce, or otherwise disperse a deluge of mind dumps into in a semi-structured online platform. In other words, Artisans is going to start a blog. We’re not 100% sure what we plan to do with it yet, but then again, nobody really knows where their blog will lead. Blogs are interactive, allowing for comments and feedback. We’ll be adding a woodworking and restoration Q&A board as soon as we figure out how to configure it, along with a few other new features. In preparation for our blog launch, we’ve migrated our entire website to a new dedicated server. We have plenty of space to expand, and room for even more websites! Please stop in, digg around, blog a while, maybe tweet a bit, and by all means bookmark it! Visit Artisans new blog at: www.artisansofthevalley.com/blog/ I t s A b o u t T i m e f o r T V ! Artisans of the Valley will be featured on EBRU-TV this September. Host Yakenda McGahee and her crew spent a day with us to experience the art of hand carving, discuss various aspects of the artistic nature of furniture making, and learn how the craft of woodworking has been passed on through generations. We will be releasing a special edition of our newsletter and announcing the details on our blog, so stay tuned for more information! P ag e 2 A r ti s ans Quar t erly Rev i ew S u s t a i n a b l e F u r n i t u r e R e q u i r e s S u s t a i n a b l e L u m b e r Green is still the in-thing, even after a whole three months since our last issue. All kidding aside, our global natural resources are stretched beyond their limits. In our last issue we discussed furniture restoration as a green alternative to replacing your existing furniture. We discussed restoration procedures using VOC compliant chemicals while reducing reusable materials venturing off to the landfill. We also commented on restoration reducing the need for new raw materials and all the associated production and transportation resources involved. So what happens when there’s nothing to restore? This time we’re going with the assumption that restoration is not an option, a new piece of furniture is required. Well, there is absolutely no need to feel bad! Just because you commission something new doesn’t mean you’re suddenly an environmental terrorist! There are a variety of options that allow us to provide our clients with new environmentally sound furniture Sam Talarico & Stan Saperstein and artistic carvings. Sustainable forestry practices ensure woodworkers have a future. It is our responsibility as craftsmen to not only pass on our skills but leave behind a planet where our apprentices can sustain their trade. Artisans is striving to ensure that all our lumber suppliers purchase from sustainable sources. Our goal is that the tree that supplies the materials for your project is either replaced with a new tree through select cutting and replanting under the close supervision of forestry management specialists or the tree comes from a local harvest where the cutting was necessary and imminent. Custom commissions and antique restorations require specialized materials. Our search efforts are mitigated by our relationships with an assortment of specialists who assist in getting what our clients need. With over 30 years in the lumber business, Talarico Hardwoods is among our armada. Talarico is known for milling the highest quality, and best selection of Old-Growth Quartered White Oak you can find. They boast a consistent inventory of English and Scottish brown oak, curly walnut, and burl sycamore. Based in rural Mohnton, PA the Talarico family’s appreciation for natural beauty and mission-style furniture drives their acquisition of these hard-to-find, big, old-growth logs while inspiring their mill to produce the highest quality lumber. Sam Talarico is passing the business to his son Clint, along with his appreciation for our environment and a real world knowledge of conservation and sustainable forestry practices. Their inventory is purchased from reputable loggers and log merchants including FSC & PEFC certified lumber, and Pfalz Forest Oak logs which originate out of Enduring/Protected forest culture areas. They have a knack for finding select cuts from private lands, estates, and urban locations for both domestic and European logs. These images are the property of Talarico Hardwoods - All Rights Reserved Images used in Artisans Quarterly were published with permission - August 2009 P ag e 3 A r ti s ans Quar t erly Rev i ew W o o d P o r n — C o u r t e s y o f T a l a r i c o H a r d w o o d s Talarico’s lumber is worthy of a center-fold layout, thus they coined the phrase ―Wood Porn.‖ In tribute, we’ve decided to dedicate a full page spread in our newsletter to give their wood an opportunity to bare it all. With lumber, true beauty only comes with age, commonly known as ―old-growth,‖ so there will be no air brushing to cover up the rings. Artisans will be continuing to source our materials from sustainable and local environmentally sound sources including approved lot clearing, local forestry management cutting, and natural tree falls. We’ll be happy to provide our clients with a project inventory and material safety data sheets defining the origin of lumber, hardware, and finishing materials. Sam Talarico with a C F Martin Limited Edition Guitar Click above for the story behind this image! “To my mind, the ultimate use and highest calling for any piece of wood is for it to be made into an acoustical musical instrument or better yet a guitar. I could only imagine what the C F Martin Co. one of the leading guitar makers in the world would put together with my choice of wood.” - Sam Talarico Clint Talarico (right) showing off his wood! Wood Porn images are the property of Talarico Hardwoods - All Rights Reserved Images used in Artisans Quarterly were published with permission - August 2009 P ag e 4 A r ti s ans Quar t erly Rev i ew T h e K a y a k i n g C o m m i s s i o n e r The characters involved in the events of life each play a roll professionally, personally, and individually. Finding the right gift to invoke praise and pride in the achievements of someone in your life is often daunting; this doesn’t have to be the case. When you engage an artist like Stanley to create a personalized piece for an individual, an act that often takes place as a clandestine operation to avoid spoiling the surprise, the artist has to gather details, facts, figures, and notations that allow him to generate an image of the person in his mind. Artisans was recently commissioned to create a commemoration gift for Chris Clark, recently appointed Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR), a man who is obviously an outdoorsman at heart, and an avid kayaker. The commission was to reflect his love for the outdoors, and portray a character obsessive about his devotion to our natural resources. The basswood & poplar hand carving, another custom Stanley original, features Commissioner Clark positioned securely in his yellow sea faring kayak; glancing down at the shark fin and gator eyes protruding from the water. We were informed this trio has had a few encounters … and that Commissioner Clark survived the day to tell the tales! “Chris has demonstrated his talent and commitment to Georgia's citizens during his tenure as Deputy Commissioner of the Department of Economic Development and as Executive Director of GEFA,” said Governor Perdue. “I appreciate Commissioner Holcomb’s long service to this state, and I am confident Chris will continue the Department’s legacy of being a champion of preserving our most precious resources.” - Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue Eric & Teri have both enjoyed Georgia’s plentiful natural resources; you may remember their stop in Millwood for a boar and turkey hunt at The Gopher Plantation in April of 2008 (Shown Right.) No date has been set yet, but they plan to return for another crack at the turkeys, to take home another boar or two, and to partake of some home cooking brought to the table with southern hospitality. The travels of Eric and Teri also brought them through Georgia Wine Country; concentrated in northern Georgia. They sampled a variety of wines, and brought home more cases than they should probably admit to consuming. Bounties also include an array of peach preserves, some cider, and a variety of fresh nuts. We should also note that Vidalia onions grow only in Vidalia County Georgia, chefs everywhere (including Eric) rely heavily on this specific Georgia natural resource. What makes a simple kayak so important? Preservation of our natural resources, wildlife, plants, habitat, aquatic environments, minerals, air… Really everything that makes our planet hospitable to life is OUR responsibility. Yes, he is qualified, he has the education, clearly the experience, and the support of Governor Purdue. The thing is, we (hunters, fisherman, boaters, campers, everyone who’s lifestyle, even their living, don’t really base our confidence on a resume. We take our breath of assurance from the fact that the new Georgia DNR Commissioner has a passion for outdoor sports. The fact is nobody masters kayaking unless they are obsessive about an outdoor lifestyle; so from this we derive that we have an ally at the reins. Carving by Stanley D. Saperstein “The mission of the Department of Natural Resources is to sustain, enhance, protect and conserve Georgia's natural, historic and cultural resources for present and future generations, while recognizing the importance of promoting the development of commerce and industry that utilize sound environmental practices.” - Georgia DNR P ag e 5 A r ti s ans Quar t erly Rev i ew K l i s e M a n u f a c t u r i n g G e t s F S C C e r t i f i e d ! The Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) is chartered in short to protect the world’s forests. These are not people chaining themselves to trees or laying in front of bulldozers, the FSC is a qualified group that is scientifically driven to achieve the goal of sustainable forestry. What is sustainable forestry? Simply put, they (we) want the forests to exist as a natural and economic resource indefinitely. Those of us in the woodworking industries obviously require, can anyone guess? … Wood! … Without wood, we are out of business and our art-forms and trades cease to exist. Therefore industry and environmentalists are partnering to ensure our future. A careful balance of harvest and preservation, reforestation, management, and general usage is required to achieve this end. Artisans is pleased to announce that Klise Manufacturing is now FSC certified. You may have heard the term ―Chain of Custody‖ before, most likely the last time you watched an episode of CSI. FSC Certification begins with the establishment of supply chain, manufacturing, inventory control, and shipping procedures that facilitate the movement of raw lumber and finished products through their lifecycle and delivery stages. This establishes a clear chain of custody, each step from the forest through the delivery to the end user is registered, and traceable. Klise is our source for over 5,000 unique, high quality, solid wood machined and hand carved products including moldings, corbels, appliqués, rosettes, panels, columns, feet, and other unique items. Tracy Sianta, Director of Marketing and Sales for Klise, plays an active role in our industry’s environmental relations, she serves on the board of the West Michigan Forest Products Society (Great Lakes Region) and is responsible for ensuring that Klise does their part for sustainable forestry. At the first stages of manufacturing wood products, an FSC Organization ensures that their raw materials are obtained from FSC certified lumber yards; sourcing is allowed from other venues but materials bearing the FSC logo cannot intermingle with materials from other sources. The manufacturing and inventory procedures are all geared towards ensuring that FSC sourced material is tracked and segregated through every process. Any break in the chain of custody, and the product can no longer bear the FSC logo. Let’s review case in point: Artisans of the Valley is not (yet) FSC Certified. We therefore cannot handle a wood product, made by Klise or anyone else, in our shop and still proclaim that it is FSC Certified. Artisans would therefore stay outside the handling process by requesting that Klise drop ship all products requiring an FSC Certification directly to the end user. That said, a drop ship won’t make sense for small items that will be intertwined into our commissions, as the FSC Certification must be proven against ALL materials in a given commission before it can be stated FSC Certified. We can assure our clients that we are purchasing our lumber from various sustainable and local sources, and are actively aware the need for good forestry practices in our industry. When does a drop ship make sense? Well it should be obvious that repeatedly transporting the same goods, especially if the route involves back tracking, is wasteful in both cost and resource usage. Therefore larger orders, say 1,000 feet of molding to California, are shipped from Klise (based in Michigan) directly to our client in California. New Jersey may be the garden state, but we’re thinking the molding really won’t be too upset when it skips the site seeing expedition! FSC Certification comes with an ongoing responsibility. Annual audits are required, and periodic inspections or verifications may be conducted. Organizations are required to maintain clear and concise record keeping and to present all chain of custody documentation to a client upon request. Klise is pioneering their industry to the next level of environmental consciousness. This is an important milestone in their commitment to sustainable forestry. We will keep you posted on our activities surrounding certification programs, how our affiliates and suppliers are achieving their environmental goals, and in general with news and updates from the woodworking and artistic industries. There’s still a lot of green left on our planet – let’s do our best to try to keep it that way! Contact us to request our CD-Portfolio, it will include a catalog of all of the Klise Products we offer! ―FSC‖ is a trademark of the Forestry Stewardship Council. Representation here is based on the credentials of Klise Mfg. P ag e 6 A r ti s ans Quar t erly Rev i ew T O D L U p d a t e s Artisans of the Valley was chosen as one of ―Kim’s Picks‖ for the Trade Only Design Library’s TODL Green section. Kim Gordon, LEED AP is Green Director for the world’s foremost designer’s library. Artisans joined TODL in November of 2008, specifying over 50 of their custom commissions and restoration services to provide examples of their work to interior designers around the world. Kim reaches out to all of TODL’s membership to promote environmentally sound business practices, products, and design. Her influence includes helping artists and manufacturers learn about, and implement a variety of environmentally sound cost effective practices that provide for marketing opportunities. Kim has a B.S. in Environmental Science and over fifteen years experience in the eco-industry. Her track record can be measured in the growing number of designers specifying green building materials, finishing supplies, and furnishings for their projects and the increasing participation of manufacturers and artists in meeting these project requirements. Check out Kim’s Picks & TODL’s public pages at: http://todl.com/public/insidegreenproducts Contact her at: [email protected] In the meantime Artisans restoration services were announced in TODL’s green products broadcast July 7th, then May 5th and June 9th TODL featured Artisans on their home page and with a showcase email broadcast that reached 47,000 of their members. In total our TODL campaigns to date have topped 2,500 designer leads adding Australia, Azerbaijan, Costa Rica, Guam, Ireland, India, Jamaica, Mexico, The Philippines, Peru, Singapore, Tortola, and Qatar to our list of international inquiries. S l i d e P o p u l a r i t y In our 2009 1st Qtr Issue we mentioned our discovery of and subsequent intentions to proliferate www.slideshare.net with, well, anything we can think of to post and draw more attention to ourselves . The evidence (the counters) show that our efforts to reach an additional audience is working, What we’re short of is comments, which are designed to spawn discussions and build the credibility of presentations. Thus, we’re taking steps to make Artisans Quarterly more interactive by asking all of you to visit our Slidespace and post your comments and reviews of our content. You’ll find our presentations under http:// www.slideshare.net/esaperstein P ag e 7 A r ti s ans Quar t erly Rev i ew F i n i s h i n g A r t e m i s ( P a r t I I o f I I ) Our last issue foretold the birth of Artemis, a custom hand made chef’s knife for Eric’s collection by New Mexico knife maker Jay Fisher. If you’re new to Artisans Quarterly, check back to Vol. 2 Issue 1 for the introduction to this two part article. We left off with a blade ready to undergo the hardening process. Shown left, the tempering process is now complete so the blade is subjected to a final test. Hardness testing utilizes a diamond stylus to penetrate the blade. Under 330lbs with a secondary 150kg load applied, Artemis tallied up with a 59HRC. All that technical babble translates into one extremely tough and durable piece of metal. So, now what? A knife blade is only one piece of the puzzle, bolsters are another group of pieces and mounting them comes next. ―Bolsters do exactly that, they bolster the blade's strength in the critical areas: the handle to blade junction, and the rear or butt of the knife where heavy blows or impact require reinforcement. The bolsters also help to protect and mechanically secure the handle.‖ - Jay’s Knife Anatomy Page. Artemis’ bolsters are mounted using a process where zero clearance 304 stainless steel pins are driven through both bolsters and tang, then peened with ―vigorous energy and impact‖ yielding a permanent, rigid assembly. Shown left, the blade meets its bolsters. Below, Eric’s knife is featured with an assortment of tactical knives that by the time this article releases will likely be in the hands of our soldiers and emergency teams around the world. Jay takes an appropriate pride, and a confident but humble position, when a soldier commissions a knife; a knife that one day his life may depend on. "The world’s elite clandestine rescue and tactical squads seek his weapons. Their lives depend on "Jay Fisher Custom Knives"- the best quality knives in the world." --Bernardo M. Perez Deputy Assistant Director - Ret. FBI Laboratory Washington, D.C. Handling this beast of a blade raised the next decision and leads us to a mastery of materials that sets Jay apart from the rest, he happens to be a lapidary. Very few knife makers use, let alone almost exclusively employ, gemstone to craft handles. The material is often misunderstood, even coming as a surprise to Eric as the best choice. Gemstone is simply a term defining rocks we as a species deem valuable or precious. We justify the basis of value on rarity, each stone being subject to grading by quality of color, inclusions, weight, density. When translucence is a factor, such as with diamonds, clarity is an important determinant in value. Unlike wood, ivory, bone, or even modern plastics, gemstones are impervious to everything found in the kitchen. Steel and stone are molecularly similar; their common base elements consist of carbon, iron, chromium, magnesium, selenium, silicon, tungsten, molybdenum, and phosphorus, among others. This elementary structural continuity between handle and blade result in a synergy in thermal coefficient. (Jay’s Gem Handles Page) OK, yeah so we stole from Jay’s site, can you blame us? It sounds really cool, and we couldn’t write it better. Translation, a stone handle and a steel blade will expand and contract uniformly, eliminating the strain on the joints common to mismatched materials. Bottom line, it’s very unlikely the handle will ever fall off. Chances are the tip of a steel blade will break before a stone handle will ever shatter. Scratching a gemstone requires silicon carbide or diamond, so unless you’re planning to smack around a diamond, the handle will remain flawless for generations of use. “The process of making the gem handle is brutal on the stone, and if it's going to break, it's going to happen then. Grinding stone is the most gut-wrenching, nerve-rattling, teeth-chattering experience you would ever want to have, Images courtesy of www.jayfisher.com all rights reserved. Published with permission. P ag e 8 A r ti s ans Quar t erly Rev i ew Jay’s confidence gave no doubt that gemstone is our choice, but that left Eric with over a year to ponder thousands of colors and textures. The final choice is Red River Jasper, a selection that only clarified itself when the blade’s shape and scale was realized. Red, the glow of the forge, blood drawn in a hunt, and the shimmering hardwood coals of a hearth; there’s a definite continuity. Shown above, the handle sections are cut from the stone slices and carefully fit into place. Next comes hours and hours of grinding and polishing. The last remaining design decision was the sheath, or in the case of a twelve- inch blade, let’s deem it a scabbard. Wielding this beast may flash us all back to the famous NYC mugging scene in the first Crocodile Dundee movie. “Sheath: You can bet this special knife would have a stunning sheath, so I created this unique art in leather and skin.” - Jay fisher Crafted in 9-10 oz. leather shoulder, for durability, and accented with hand- carved inlay areas to set off the burgundy Ostrich Leg skin; Jay used broad, bold pieces of the skin, designed to accentuate the large scale pattern nicely. Jay’s attention to detail is echoed in a profile and belt loop following the form of a hunting bow. The massive belt loop and edge welt are stitched with tough black nylon in a zigzag pattern for great strength and to match the tension bindings on the sheath. The bindings are red suede leather, mounted to hint at Artemis' bow strings, accented with hand-formed copper rings. The sheath has a brass snap at the flap, which secures and completely covers the knife handle for protection. Final treatment of this dyed leather is a lacquer seal. The perfect final touch is a custom matching embroidered and double-stitched cotton-poly blend storage bag for convenient carry and to ensure the sheath remains in pristine shape. Images courtesy of www.jayfisher.com all rights reserved. Published with permission. P ag e 9 A r ti s ans Quar t erly Rev i ew A knife like this is an amazing display of craftsmanship, and although worthy of a pedestal, to worship it in a C h i p c h a t s F e a t u r e s A r t i s a n s ’ S a f a r i c h e s t case is to a waste an implement literally forged for durability equivalent to its artistic form. Even saving this We’ve continued our appearances in knife for special occasions would be deprivation, and the National Woodcarver’s why should Eric subject himself to that? Association’s ―Chip Chats‖ magazine. Eric’s plan is simple, put the knife to daily use. From the The March-April issue features our day it arrives, its monetary value will be forgotten, he hand carved solid cherry safari chest. A will test it, he will maintain a razor’s edge, and he’ll unique original design artistic proudly subject Artemis to what will give any strict knife commission. collector, any collector, a migraine. Just a thought … what if Eric wrote like he speaks? As View the Article Online Now! luck would have it, he does. So let’s randomly change directions in the middle of an article, then loop it back to derive a logical conclusion. Can you imagine a time a few hundred years into the future, one night someone wanders the internet, searches the Wayback Machine and turns up our newsletter? With a little research, and lets hope a large investment, perhaps they will reunite Artemis with one our gothic tables. They could then prepare a great banquet, and cross the paths of two artists long after our ashes return to ashes ... (Or maybe metal shavings and sawdust?) This interlude may seem an oddly nostalgic fantasy of aspiration. Then again, if you think about it, collectors and historians spend lifetimes completing their quests for a complete collection. Those artists that aspire to deliver an ever improving quality and longevity within their work are the ones that provide the objects of desire for future generations. The legacy of an artist stands through time only when their work survives long enough to reach the hands of furniture generations. Eric, Teri & Stan produce furniture, carvings and sculptures burned with their signatures. When their skills are recognized by a value placed by antique collectors of the 22nd century, their work will have succeeded in extending their presence in this world beyond their time. The final product of Jay’s labor is likewise far from an ending; Artemis, branded with Jay’s mark, is destined to endure through generations. A great chef’s knife is not a tool, but more an extension of a chef’s hand; Jay’s immortality transitions through Artemis into culinary artistry, indulging thousands of palates by crafting countless feasts. Images courtesy of www.jayfisher.com all rights reserved. Published with permission. “It gives me great (if somewhat apprehensive) satisfaction that ninety percent of the pieces I make will still be admired centuries after my bones are dust! They will, however, continue to appreciate in value. Unfortunately, I won't be able to benefit from that” Jay Fisher - World Class Knife Maker: Featured Custom Knives www.jayfisher.com P ag e 1 0 A r ti s ans Quar t erly Rev i ew R e v i t a l i z i n g G o l d e n O a k Those of you that follow Artisans Quarterly have already seen several golden oak restoration projects featured. The thing is, we’re just not tired of restoring this type of furniture, nor are we tired of featuring the projects in our newsletter. Golden oak furniture always provides an amazing transition project after project. Golden oak furniture ranges from highly ornate gothic style carvings with griffins, lions, paws, claws, and acanthus leaves to the more simplistic and basic mission styles. This recent restoration is a basic Arts & Crafts style, arriving in the same condition as many of its cousins, it was falling apart! The pieces are broken down to their basic components and the finishes are removed to start the process. All the joints are separated, cleaned, and then the framework and cases are reassembled. Cleanup of all the excess glue is followed by two coats of shellac, then four coats of satin Waterlox tung oil varnish. As you can see, these dressers have completed Teri’s final inspection and touchup (bottom right.) The two pieces are ready to serve another generation. Remember, the cost of restoration remains far less than replacing a set like this with a new one. Every restoration preserves existing milled lumber and extends its functional duration, that means less demand for logging! Visit our Restoration Gallery for more examples of Artisans Projects