Lost Art Press

Category: The Anarchist’s Tool Chest

An Indentured Apprentice

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“But to prevent their apprentices from doing so (running away),” continued Ebenezer, “the masters generally bind them by an indenture to stay a certain time. An indenture is a contract in writing. The reason it is called an indenture is, because it is, or at least it used to be, made in two parts, one for the master and one for the apprentice, and these two parts are written on the same sheet of paper and then cut apart in a waving line, so that the edges of both papers are indented in exactly the same way, and thus they will fit each other precisely.”

“What good did that do?” asked John.

“I don’t know exactly,” said Ebenezer. “They thought they could put them together again, and if the two parts fitted, that would show that it was all right. But now I am going to indenture you, or else I might expect, that, after you have sawed here three or four times, and I had had all the trouble of teaching you how to do it, you’ll get tired and so not come any more. I’m not willing to begin unless you agree to come seven days – and saw for me one hour each day.”

“And how about planing?” asked John.

“That will be a separate apprenticeship,” said Ebenezer.

“Well,” said John, “I will agree to it.”

“This indenture witnesseth that John Gay binds himself to Ebenezer Greenwood as an apprentice for seven days, an hour each day, not less than three days each week, and that Ebenezer Greenwood promises to teach him the art and mystery of sawing.”

— from “John Gay; Or, Work for Boys: Work for Spring” by Jacob Abbott, 1864

So Aren’t You Inconsistent on Tool Chests?

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This week I have been taking a fair amount of flinged poo – both private poo and public poo – about my involvement with Don Williams’s forthcoming book “Virtuoso: The Toolbox of Henry O. Studley.”

The flinged feces goes something like this: As the author of “The Anarchist’s Tool Chest,” which argues for a simple and flexible chest, aren’t you a hypocrite for getting the masses excited about a chest that espouses an opposite viewpoint?

The Studley toolchest is an icon of our craft for several reasons. It is the Farrah Fawcett poster-child for the wall-hanging tool chest set. It is a socially productive application of obsessive behavior. It is, on one level, tool pornography. And it is a touchstone to a different kind of tool chest that was made by patternmakers.

If Studley and I were to sit down and have a beverage, I think we would agree on some things and disagree on others. He and I see eye-to-eye on the fact that you should have a limited set of quality tools – the best you can afford. We agree that all these tools should be in a chest that is easily accessible from the bench. And we would agree that making your own tools – or modifying stock tools – is good practice.

Where we seem to disagree is on the way we achieve these goals. Studley fitted every tool into a single-purpose slot. Studley put every tool in its place. And with great gothic style. I prefer the flexible school – I want my tools to be “free range,” for lack of a better expression.

Perhaps our personality differences could be summed up like this: When growing up, Studley probably preferred that his peas and gravy remained separate. Me, I like a melange of peas, gravy, bread crusts, cranberry jelly and bits of bird flesh in every fork-full.

But despite these small differences, I actually feel a kinship with the man. I’m not a mason. I’m not a piano-maker. I am not as nimble (more on this later). But we both like sharp tools that are made well and feel good in the hand.

And who doesn’t?

— Christopher Schwarz

Fine Art Prints from ‘The Anarchist’s Tool Chest’

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We have a handful of fine art prints that are based on images from “The Anarchist’s Tool Chest.”

There are two images made by Narayan Nayar in his studio: One is a collage of 22 images from the book, plus a silhouette of the square on the cover. The other image is a photo illustration that Narayan made using photos of the chest, construction drawings, rough sketches and historical research materials.

The image size of all the prints is approximately 20″ x 30″. We are selling it two ways: Unmounted on some uber-sensuous paper and stretched on canvas.

Here are the details on the unmounted paper print. It is printed on Hahnemuhle Photo Rag 308, one of the finest giclée papers in existence. This matte paper seems to absorb light and draws you in like nothing else. The detail, depth and tonality of images printed on it and its velvety texture make it the gold standard in the fine art print industry.

These sheets are 24″ wide by 36″ tall and can be framed like a poster. The HPR prints are $80 plus $12 for shipping and packaging – these prints come in a protective bag and are rolled in a tube.

You can order these HPR 308 prints here.

The canvas gallery wrap is first printed on a coated cloth canvas, dried, given a protective coating then stretched by hand onto a wooden frame about 1-1/4″ deep. Images made on canvas have a unique character derived from the surface irregularity of the canvas and the dimensionality of the wrap.

The coating applied to the canvas after the print is made has a slight sheen to it and protects from UV degradation. The wraps can be hung as-is or inset in a frame, offering a very different look on a wall than a traditional framed paper print. These canvas prints measure approximately 20″ x 30″ and have a black border. They’ll come in a protective sleeve but are a bit unwieldy because they’re mounted on rigid stretcher bars. They cost $120 plus $14 for packaging and shipping.

You can order these canvas prints here.

Once these are gone (we have only about 10 of each kind), we probably will offer these prints through some third-party vendor. This batch of prints is made by hand, one at a time.

— Christopher Schwarz

Shopping Notes: New Shirts, New Edition

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As promised, here are a couple updates to the products in our store. As of now, all of “The Anarchist’s Tool Chest” books shipped from Lost Art Press are the second printing. We have no more first editions left. If you are a mule for first editions, I recommend you check out some of our suppliers.

Also, we now have red “The Anarchist’s Tool Chest” T-shirts in our store. These are American-made shirts and are available in sizes small up to XXL. They are $20 each — get them now before we run out. Once these are gone, they are gone.

More news to come on the ePub edition of “The Anarchist’s Tool Chest.”

— Christopher Schwarz

WIA Surprise No. 2: Anarchist Tool Chest Art Prints

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Just in case you need yet another reason to stop by the Lost Art Press booth at Woodworking in America: we’ll have limited-edition, signed Anarchist Tool Chest art prints for your viewing (and purchasing) pleasure.

There are two prints on offer. One design features a collage of 22 images from “The Anarchist Tool Chest” and a silhouette of the iconic Anarchist’s Square. The other design is a poster-sized version of the “chest design” image on page 354 of the text.

All prints have an imaged area of roughly 20 x 30 inches and are made by me in my studio. And to make things even less straightforward, both designs are available in two formats. Why two formats? Honestly, it’s because Chris had a brain aneurism while trying to decide which format he liked better. Don’t worry—he’s fine now. Mostly.

1: Hahnemuhle Photo Rag 308, one of the finest giclée papers in existence. This matte paper seems to absorb light and draws you in like nothing else. The detail, depth and tonality of images printed on it and its velvety texture make it one of my all-time favorites and the gold standard in the fine art print industry:

These sheets are 24” wide by 36” tall, signed at the bottom by both myself and Chris and can be framed like a poster (they won’t be matted and shrink-wrapped version in the photo above). The HPR prints are $80 at the show and will come in a protective bag and rolled in a tube.

2: Canvas Gallery Wrap. These prints are made on a coated cloth canvas, dried, given a protective coating, then stretched by hand onto a wooden frame about 1-1/4″ deep. Images made on canvas have a unique character derived from the surface irregularity of the canvas and the dimensionality of the wrap:

The coating applied to the canvas after the print is made has a slight sheen to it and protects from UV degradation. The wraps can be hung as-is or inset in a frame, offering a very different look on a wall than a traditional framed paper print. These canvas prints measure approximately 20” x 30” and have a black border. They’ll come in a protective sleeve but are a bit unwieldy because they’re mounted on rigid stretcher bars. (They’ll be a great option for those of you driving to Cincinnati). They cost $120 at the show and will also be signed by me and Chris.

We’re bringing a very limited run of all of these prints to WIA: fewer than 50. The prints will be first-come, first serve. And yes, if you buy them at the show we can mail them to you at home (we’ll charge only actual shipping and packaging costs).

After Woodworking in America, we hope to offer these art prints to the rest of our customers. We’ll post details in the coming weeks here on the blog and through the LAP newsletter.

I’ll write a little more on the creation of the ATC images in a later post, but even if you’re not interested in taking one of these prints home for yourself, swing by the Lost Art Press booth at WIA just to see the images produced with greater care and in greater detail than what would ever be possible on the pages of a book.

If there are any questions about the prints, I’m happy to take them in the comments.

— Narayan Nayar, the designer who created the photoillustrations that open the chapters of “The Anarchist’s Tool Chest”