Monthly Archives: February 2012

the concentration of power

Posted on February 28, 2012 by

THE VILLAGE LABOURER, 1760-1832, by J. L. and Barbara Hammond “Enclosures might have benefited all parties, but now they form part of what Blackstone denominates a ‘failed rural policy’, one which has completed the degradation and ruin of our agricultural … Continue reading →

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traditional craftsmanship

Posted on February 25, 2012 by

“Any efforts to safeguard traditional craftsmanship must focus not on preserving craft objects – no matter how beautiful, precious, rare or important they might be – but on creating conditions that will encourage artisans to continue to produce crafts of … Continue reading →

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penniman axe

Posted on February 14, 2012 by

The particular axe that I am looking at is stamped PENNIMAN&BROTHER BALTIMORE, and was probably made ca. 1830-50.  When I am working with my collection of old tools, especially the timber framing chisels and broadaxes, there is a recurring sense that … Continue reading →

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juneteenth

Posted on February 13, 2012 by

Juneteenth The best thing about summer in Arkansas was that you could go fishing every day, except Sunday of course.  A quick turn through the barnyard and you had all the worms and crickets you’d need for a mess of … Continue reading →

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teahouse 2011

Posted on February 9, 2012 by

The teahouse was developed in late sixteenth-century Japan by Sen-no-Rikyu, a Zen Buddhist monk who was an advisor to the Shogun Hideyoshi.  A small building with a low doorway, modeled on a peasant’s hut, the teahouse nevertheless commanded great respect.  … Continue reading →

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proportion and measure

Posted on February 9, 2012 by

In Western cultures, our architectural instinct surfaced in the Pythagoreans and became central, revealing that the soul, which took on various material shapes, was ultimately form.  Studying form was thus the true purification. Sanctuary is a primary human requirement.  The … Continue reading →

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the enclosure movement

Posted on February 9, 2012 by

The open-field village was essentially a self-contained social and economic organization originally based upon production for subsistence, not for market.  It was not peculiar to England–or to Europe.  Whenever and wherever man first reached the stage of settled cultivation, some … Continue reading →

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