Lost Art Press

Category: Campaign Furniture

Forum Update 7/18

Posted on by meghanlostartpress

Long-Bookshelf

Good Morning and Happy Monday! It’s that time of the week for a forum update. Remember, if you have a question about our products, procedures in our books or anything related to Lost Art Press, the fastest way to get an answer is our forum. Check it out here.

Making a Wider Bookshelf
Thomas needed a bookshelf to fit a 6 foot space in his home, so he modified the bookshelf from “The Anarchist’s Design Book.” (shown above) Now he is trying to decide on a paint color. See his modifications and put in your vote for a paint color here.

1770 French Bench Doe’s Foot
Ever wonder how one would plane the edge of a board that was too short to reach the hold fast holes on the right hand leg on the vise-less French benches? Or wonder why the doe’s feet shown on most plates are so wide and short? Chris had. And then he saw the recent posts on the Lost Art Press blog. See his thought process here.

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The Campaign Worktable of Necessity
How do you guarantee yourself a great workspace if your job moves you around to different offices on a regular basis with no promise of a decent desk at the next location? Build yourself a campaign worktable of course. And not just any table, one with style. Above it is shown disassembled and ready to be moved. See the table assembled here.

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Why do cut nails rotate when driven?
John has noticed a rotation when driving cut nails and was wondering if there is a way to avoid it. A few suggestions have been provided to him as to how to prevent this. Have your own solution or the same problem? Here is the place to comment.

A Boarded Campaign Chest
Joshua’s Campaign Chest that he was looking for some feedback on a couple weeks ago is coming along really well. (shown at right) The hardware is a great touch. Now for some feet and it will be set to go!

Parallel Guides
Jeremy has been working on a split top Ruobo and has a couple questions on parallel guides. Check out the specifics of his build and see if you can offer some advice here.

staked-chair

First Ever Chair
Let’s end with a shout out to John for finishing his first ever chair. It is the design from “The Anarchist’s Design Book.” Looks awesome! Congratulations!

Keep up the good work everyone! Cheers and see you next week.

— MB

Sir Winston Churchill (and a Roorkhee)

Posted on by Lost Art Press

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An eagle-eyed reader spotted this photo at the National Portrait Gallery in London – Sir Winston Churchill in 1944 in North Africa with Field Marshal Harold Rupert Leofric George Alexander, 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis (sorry, had to include the full name) and Wladyslaw Anders, a Polish army general.

And look! To Churchill’s right is an excellent example of a Roorkhee chair with canvas covers. The chair has square blocks at the tops of the legs, a type I have seen before but never built. If my memory serves me right the feet finish with somewhat of a stake-like point, perhaps to dig into the terrain.

After building about 25 Roorkhee chairs since researching my book “Campaign Furniture,” the amusing fact is that I haven’t built one for myself. I still have just enough latigo leather and mahogany to do the job. I just have to find the time.

Read more about this photo from its description at the National Portrait Gallery here.

— Christopher Schwarz

Staked, Boarded and Folding Furniture from 1570 Italy

Posted on by Lost Art Press

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Indexer Suzanne Ellison was browsing this week through the 1570 “Opera di M. Bartolomeo Scappi,” a huge six-part book documenting the recipes Scappi cooked for cardinals and popes. And she turned up these interesting plates featuring some early furniture forms straight from the Middle Ages and “The Anarchist’s Design Book.”

Check out the staked tables (above) with the massive square and tapered legs. I’ve been meaning to build some tables like this, but my fear is that the legs will look too weird. There’s only one way to find out, I suppose.

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Also interesting: A trestle table shown from the side. I love this image because it destroys the notion that each trestle had four legs and there is a problem with the perspective of the drawing. One point here for the Middle Ages artists.

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Check out the collapsible table for cooking in the countryside. This form survives today and was widely reproduced as a piece of campaign furniture.

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Finally, miscellaneous furniture: a small bench for sitting (banchetta, or today it would be called la panchetta) or as a step stool. Small benches similar to the banchetta are still in use today. Or, a very interesting taller bench for scrutiny of accounts or writing (or for sitting a bit higher) with a drawer neatly tucked under the edge of the benchtop.

— Christopher Schwarz

A New Review of ‘Campaign Furniture’

Posted on by Lost Art Press

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The Woodworkers Institute has just published a short and sweet review of “Campaign Furniture.” You can read the full review here. We’re now shipping the second printing of this book, which has a few corrections here and there.

I really would love to write a follow-up book; my research into the style didn’t stop when the book came out in winter 2014. First I have to finish my current book project (the end is in sight) and edit about six books from other authors before I can even consider hitting the campaign trail again.

— Christopher Schwarz

Kaare Klint Safari Chairs: Early & Later

Posted on by Lost Art Press

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I’m interested in how furniture (and tool) designs change. Typically the trajectory is toward entropy or dissolution. But sometimes it goes the other way (see Lie-Nielsen and Veritas handplanes.)

safari_klint1_detailThis week I have been deep into reading the Kaare Klint monograph by Gorm Harkaer. It is a staggering work in both scale and scope. Harkaer covers everything from Klint’s paintings to his sculpture, logo designs and (of course) furniture. It’s the second-most expensive book I own, but I don’t regret a penny.

Today I was examining some of the photos of Klint’s Safari chair, which was born from the Roorkee chair of the campaign-furniture era. The above photo is one of the earliest chairs from 1933.

The legs are teak. And note the folded over and stitched leather arms. Oh and I couldn’t resist noting that the screws are clocked.

Later chairs were mahogany or “smoked” ash, according to Harkaer. “Smoking” involves coloring the ash with ammonia steam.

The chair below is a 1953 version in smoked ash with a canvas seat. Note we now have the familiar non-stitched arms. I much prefer the stitched arms. They sag a lot less over time.

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Other interesting details from the monograph:

  • The seat coverings were available in leather, undyed linen drill or canvas in brown blue or olive.
  • After Klint’s death, his son designed a footstool to go with the chair.
  • More than 150,000 official Safari chairs have been made since 1933.

— Christopher Schwarz

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