Joshua Klein and Mike Updegraff have just released a podcast that discusses the making of the new book “Hands Employed Aright” and how the life of craftsman Jonathan Fisher has informed and changed their own work.
Josh’s research into Fisher’s life has attracted a lot of interest among scholars and woodworkers who are fascinated by pre-industrial methods. Earlier this month, Josh presented some of his findings at Colonial Williamsburg’s “Working Wood in the 18th Century” seminar. And the book was also favorably reviewed in the latest issue of Fine Woodworking (a first for Lost Art Press).
It’s a beautifully written, photographed and designed book, and we’re thrilled that Joshua’s five years of hard work are paying off.
I gasped a little bit this evening when I opened the latest issue of Fine Woodworking magazine and saw a full-page review of Joshua Klein’s “Hands Employed Aright.” The review is on page 20 of the February 2019 issue and is quite favorable.
The review is well-deserved. Joshua poured his heart into the project, and the book required many years of research, photography and writing.
Thanks to Barry Dima, the author of the review, and Josh.
(Jonathan Fisher’s) notebooks are also full of artistic flourishes. For Fisher, mathematics was more than raw numbers – it explained the beauty of the world around him. – JONATHAN FISHER MEMORIAL.
Fisher’s biographers have dealt extensively with his academic interests, especially mathematics and science. The archives at the Fisher House are full of notebooks of geometry lessons, surveying formulas and navigational methods from his studies at Harvard. Notebooks from his time in Blue Hill also show elaborate calculations and scale drawings – even for simple projects such as outbuildings.
Fisher made an orthographic projection of his barn in one of his notebooks 30 years after it was built. – JONATHAN FISHER MEMORIAL.
His fascination with natural science is evident from weather records, drawings and notes about animals he studied, and the almost-clinical observations he made in his journal about his ailments and physical condition. One of the most vivid examples of his analytical mind can be seen in a journal entry from Nov. 29, 1824, only days after the death of his daughter, Sally. Here he wrote, “In the evening while calm in mind and not then thinking particularly of my deceased daughter, a great heat came over my breast, which followed with restlessness; then a prostration of strength, or nervous debility and faintness, from which I was gradually restored within 2 or 3 hours. A sympathy, I suppose, between the nervous system and the mind, but in a manner to me inexplicable; something similar but less in degree I experienced several times after the death of my eldest son. We are fearfully and wonderfully made.”
Fisher’s geometry exercises retain the foot holes and scribe marks of his dividers during layout. The parson was trained in geometric design, and his body of woodwork reflects it. – JONATHAN FISHER MEMORIAL.
His time alone in his study was sacred. This wood-paneled room, opposite the front parlor, was where Fisher spent much of his time. Most mornings he sat near the fireplace working on his Hebrew or on sermons.
His daughter, Nancy, recorded once how his “little room [was] consecrated to learning, Devotion and perhaps sometimes to the Muses.” Fisher commended academic pursuit not only to his own children but to the community he ministered. His involvement was critical in bringing about the Blue Hill Library and Blue Hill Academy. He also served as a trustee and regularly gave money to Bangor Theological Seminary, “the palladium of truth in this region.” He wrote several books and broadsides, the most ambitious of which, was his 350-page self-published, “Scripture Animals” (1834), which contained descriptions of every animal recorded in the Bible, accompanied by a woodcut that he engraved. Besides his native English, he was proficient (or at least moderately so) in several languages: Latin, French, Hebrew, Greek, Aramaic and Malay, as well as that of the local Passamaquoddy tribe. He preached all throughout Massachusetts and Maine, and devoured newspapers and books, saving or transcribing interesting anecdotes or recipes for future use.
Opposite his parlor, Fisher spent much of his time in his study preparing sermons, performing mathematics and learning new languages.
His preaching tone was heavily influenced by his academic training and was described as more instructive than inspired. An excerpt from his conclusion to “Scripture Animals” illustrates this well. In defending the good character of God despite the existence of predation in the natural world, he writes, “To illustrate the subject, I will suppose that by means of the several kinds of carnivorous animals, three animals subsist where otherwise but two could have subsisted. I will suppose that each of these animals enjoys as much as either would have done; if there had been but two; in this case the enjoyment is as three to two. I will next suppose the comparative enjoyment of animals to be, on an average, nine degrees, for one degree of suffering; this gives eight degrees of positive enjoyment for each animal. If there are three animals for two, there are eight degrees of enjoyment for twenty-four. Let us suppose the suffering under this economy diminished one third, which I think probable, then in the case of three animals the degrees of suffering will be but two, and the degrees of positive enjoyment by means of rapacious animals twenty-five, instead of sixteen. Is it not then real evidence of benevolence in God, that there are rapacious animals?”
The Lost Art Press storefront will be open today from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. And then we’re having a book-release party for “Hands Employed Aright” with the author Joshua Klein – all the way from Maine. The party starts at 7 p.m. and all are invited.
Joshua has prepared a presentation on his research into the life of Jonathan Fisher, the subject of “Hands Employed Aright.” He’ll also be answering questions about the book (and Mortise & Tenon Magazine) and signing books.
The Jonathan Fisher story is a fascinating one, and “Hands Employed Aright” uses diaries, historical records and loads of physical evidence to paint a surprisingly complete and vibrant picture of what it was like to be a woodworker in 18th-century America. The book is a gripping read and is filled with inspiring photos of Fisher’s work and tools.
Other Stuff at the Storefront As always, Brendan Gaffney, Megan Fitzpatrick and I have been busy in the shop. I just finished a couple stools and a Welsh stick chair in maple with a soap finish. Megan is working on some sawbenches and Brendan is building a coopering handplane.
You can come check out the Crucible Lump Hammer (I have only my personal one, which is not for sale – sorry) and hit some things with it. Plus we have some blemished books to sell for 50 percent off list (cash only). Plus the whole line of Lost Art Press titles – and bandanas (cash, credit or checks). Plus free stickers and coffee.
Editor’s Note: For those of you who have purchased “Hands Employed Aright,” you’ll note that we also used Jessica Roux’s illustration as endsheets. It was more expensive than typical endsheets, but worth it in every way. And now you can purchase a poster of this gorgeously detailed work of art.
— Kara Gebhart Uhl
When I got home from work yesterday, the long-anticipated shipment of the Jonathan Fisher workshop posters was sitting on my front porch! This poster features the incredible illustration that was commissioned for my new book, “Hands Employed Aright: The Furniture Making of Jonathan Fisher (1768-1847).” The image is a recreation of a typical Jonathan Fisher workshop scene, in which the parson is hard at work making furniture for his and his community’s homes. Everything from the barn he worked in, the tools hanging on the walls, the partially assembled desk in the foreground, to the sheep inside and pigs outside are all based on surviving artifacts or documentation. Little in this illustration is conjecture.
When I pitched this idea to Chris during the book editing process, he said “yes” without reservation. We agreed that this rare opportunity to see the pieces of this story come together seemed too good to pass up.
Because I’ve long admired the folk whimsy of artist Jessica Roux, having her do the artwork was a no-brainer. And we couldn’t be more pleased with how it came out. It is rich in detail, color and texture, and is something we knew folks would want to hang on their wall.
This 18″ x 22″ poster was printed in the U.S. on 100-lb. matte-coated paper. Jessica’s super high-res work means this poster was printed with crisp detail. Mike and I are now beginning to ship these posters out into the world. The poster is $15 and can be ordered here. (Yes, we take international orders.) We’re only doing one run, so if you want one now’s the time to order.
