Why We Make Things and Why It Matters: The Education of a Craftsman Author: Visit Amazon's Peter Korn Page | Language: English | ISBN:
1567925111 | Format: PDF
Why We Make Things and Why It Matters: The Education of a Craftsman Description
From Booklist
Drawing on his decades of experience handcrafting fine furniture, Korn’s previous books have primarily focused on teaching woodworking to neophytes, including the best-selling Woodworking Basics (2003). In this inspired departure from such how-to guides, Korn explores the fundamental reasons why he and other artistically inclined hobbyists and professionals passionately devote themselves to their craft, often for little recognition or monetary gain. Against the backdrop of a consumer marketplace saturated with machine-manufactured goods, Korn asks readers to consider what makes creative work so rewarding, what the nature of those rewards actually are, and what making things can reveal about our deeper nature. In answering these questions, Korn describes his own life as a crucible of self-discovery, recounting how his middle-class Philadelphia upbringing led to carpentry work, then designing furniture, then teaching woodworking, and finally to founding a furniture-making school in Maine. Written with as much attention to polished prose as the author gives to his woodworking, Korn’s book is a stirring testimonial for self-fulfillment through craftsmanship, whatever form it takes. --Carl Hays
Review
Here, furniture maker Korn shifts from how-to guides to a more philosophical approach to woodcraft. [...] This book documents Korn's personal philosophy, interweaves art and existence, and is based on a strong belief in his work.[...] An uplifting title for artisans, novice or skilled, who will benefit from the ideas of a kindred spirit. --Library Journal
Written with as much attention to polished prose as the author gives to his woodworking, Korn s book is a stirring testimonial for self-fulfillment through craftsmanship, whatever form it takes. --ALA Booklist
Peter Korn writes that his work as a furniture-maker tries to accomplish three goals: integrity, simplicity, and grace. Fortunately, these qualities are also what distinguish his writing. In this book, he gives the reader an almost tangible sense of what it takes to be a creative craftsman, a homo faber, a maker of things, which is one of the central elements of the human condition. But he does much more than that: he explores what the search for self and for belonging entails in our rapidly changing times. --Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
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- Hardcover: 176 pages
- Publisher: David R Godine (October 31, 2013)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1567925111
- ISBN-13: 978-1567925111
- Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
- Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
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