Two weeks ago, James Wright and his daughter Melody visited Lost Art Press to do a video tour and interview. James – aka Wood by Wright – is one of the important people who are keeping hand tool woodworking alive on the internet. (Also important in my book: Rex Krueger.)
I love both these guys – though I hardly know them – because they are passionate about handwork. But they also don’t take sponsorships or money from tool companies. This means that when James goes on a multi-year investigation of glues, that the whole series isn’t going to end with #ad.
I’ve been watching their videos for years, and it’s fair to say that we don’t agree on everything. But that’s the beauty of the (I’ll say it) kinder hand tool community. I’ve always felt in good company at meetings of EAIA and M-WTCA, even when a few of them wanted to wring my neck for my love of Stanley Type 11 bench planes.
Anyway, James and I had a nice long chat about what we do at Lost Art Press and why. In the coming weeks he says he’ll edit and post his tour of our workshop, storefront and warehouse.
If you aren’t familiar with James or Rex, it’s time to remedy that. Subscribe to their YouTube channels and (at the very least) Instagram feeds.
— Christopher Schwarz
I’ve been enjoying Rex’s and James’s content by years. They are good folks.
“I’ve been watching their videos for years, and it’s fair to say that we don’t agree on everything.”
Tolerance is a GOOD thing. It implies validation and general acceptance of the person’s experience. We all come from different backgrounds and histories. Exposing ourselves to other/new ways of doing things is how we all COLLECTIVELY get better–as people and as crafts people. It reminds me of the saying “When we are successful, we build a bigger table, not a taller fence.”
Looking forward to it!!
Rex got me introduced to Lost Art Pressed many years ago, it’s awesome to see you’re aware of him and gave him a shout-out!
I appreciate the shout-out to Rex Kreuger, and it makes me more eager to follow Wood by Wright. Because — let me be honest here — Chris Schwarz’ writing in THE ANARCHIST’S TOOL CHEST is what made me want to be a woodworker. His (your) writing is lucid and luminous: clear and enlightening and inspiring. I read about how to build the tool chest, and I thought, “I can do that. That’s within my wheelhouse and ability!”
(narrator – “it was very much not within his wheelhouse and ability… even if he is getting better.”
But Rex actually got me over some of the serious mental hurdles by saying, “start with a cheap big-box wood saw and a speed square. Build a $30 Roman bench in a weekend. There’s flat-flat, and flat-enough.”