Re: When did you break into actually selling pieces?

On Apr 14, 10:25 pm, Prometheus <prometh...@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
On 14 Apr 2007 06:08:47 -0700, "cad" <cadman...@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Hi Kevin,
One peculiar thing I have learned since I started selling my work is
that people seem intriqued by the "mistakes" or unexpected attributes
that arrise when making a turned object.

Since I have sold several pieces I considered junk because of
imperpfections I either made or were inherent in the wood, I came to
accept this as one of the unique features of that particular bowl and
now never exclude one for availability.

One thing that is often hard to avoid is heat cracks in the wall if
you get the surface too hot, but people love this feature in a bowl.

Quite a while ago, I recall a person (and I cannot remember whom)
saying to me (paraphrased):

"It won't be long before everything is produced with such precision,
and made from things that have little direct connection with natural
materials, that people will long for the moments when they can leave
the office and just touch something made of wood."

That has stuck with me over the years, and I think it really rings
true. Beyond the concept of wood as a material (wood was just a handy
metaphor, of course), I would imagine (and I know it is true for
myself, at least) that people either conciously or subconciously are
beginning to reach that state. There is a lot of value in modern
production methods, and it is amazing what things can be made, and
made availible to the general public. But our stunning degree of
wealth in terms of manufactured goods comes with a human cost as well.

While I have a computer in front of me that contains billions of
microscopic transistors working in unison, I no longer see that as
unusual. Despite the amazing degree of sophistication in the
technology, and the sheer amount of raw genius that went into creating
it, it is so cheaply availible and commonplace, that the wonder of a
this thing that is unrivaled in human history is greatly diminished.
It was made by machines which can do no other thing, rarely make
mistakes, and have no inherant obsticles to overcome- machines
operated by individuals who most likely could not explain even a
fraction of the functions of that machine is actually performing.
There is nothing there to hold in awe, save the minds that initially
concieved and implemented them, and it is hard to capture that elusive
image and pause to give thanks for the giants who made a thing
possible.

On the other hand, a flawed object created by the hand of a living
human being says something enitrely different. It is the flaw itself
that directs the mind of the observer to wonder and disbelief. The
flaw reveals to us that the object is *not* the product of a
dispassionate automation which is capable of mindless repetition, but
rather an object which has been worked by a person who has had to
overcome many obsticles and endure many failures to learn how to bend
a material to their will. When they made the thing, they cared. Even
on a bad day, a craftsman or artisan does not try to produce shoddy
work- and even on a good day, a person who has no abilities or
interest in those areas cannot replicate even the meanest of items
made by those who have taken the time to learn what is needed to
create a thing.

It is that knowledge, whether it is stated explicitly or buried deep
in the psyche, that breeds a general fascination with flawed works. A
flawed work has a soul, and contains in every curve and plane a
reflection of the dedication and work of the person who created it.
It is the union of all those things which make us human crystalized,
and reconnects us to the hundreds of thousands of years in which our
species has struggled with mind, heart, and hands to bring us to our
present level of wealth and leisure. The flaw is history set in
material form- displaying a snapshot of the temporary limitations of,
and even more importantly, the promise of an ever-changing evolving
mind.

That's why your observation is not all that peculiar, at least in my
mind.

When I lost my job after 23 yrs of false security, I was forced into a
mode of survival. I had 5 yrs of online marketing on the side and knew
the ins and outs of persuasion to particular markets and immediately
dove into making a business of making turned work and selling it to
offset my coming hard times.

But this rationalization soon fizzled out as I found the market
simiply wasnt a cut and dry business.

Now my turning is again, where it has always been. In my heart and a
passion. The rare customer is a blessing and trying to make it a
profitable venture requires even more time and resources than the job
I had for so long and I quit pursuing this.

In the past year of my hiatus, I have experienced some very profound
spiriitual awakenings. Things that go beyond rational thought and
logic which have put me on a path of trying to get closer to God.I put
away my aspirations of profit and grandeur and simply enjoy the craft
now. I make pieces with specific people in mind and give them to those
people hoping to show my deep appreciation for the contribution they
made to me that have led me to where I am now.

I still get a random buyer, out of the blue, that gratifies my
illogical yearning to touch and feel the wood, and make me feel I am
doing it for more than just a hobby.

I commune with the wood now, not just cut and sand it.It is something
that I can go to and feel so completely at home and peaceful with
nothing else compares to it. And when I have a piece that is done, I
can revel in its intricacies and find a happiness again that I know is
a natural part of me just like finding and eating that particular meal
I craved.

Turning will always be spiritual for me, and I will still have a site
that offers it for sale, but I give much more of it to deserving
people now to fulfill that deep need to share myself with others.

In my studies, one thing that has struck me very significantly is; if
you want money then you give it away to others. If you want knowledge,
then give this to others. Everything you want from life you can have
simply by giving what you have of it, to others without expecting
anything back in return. I try to practice this now, and it is still
foreign to my analytical and logical remnants still hanging on so
desperately to my persona, but it does ring true. I see it happen each
time I do it.

cad

.

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