Saturday, August 16, 2008

What's your poison - design or craftsmanship?

I almost always find Chris Schwarz' blog fun to read. He writes well, and even if you're not really into woodworking, he's an entertaining and thought-provoking writer.

An entry last week, 'When Design and Craftsmanship Don't Meet', epitomises everything about Schwarz' writing that I love.

I'm not even going to try and look clever by paraphrasing his article; that would only serve to make me look foolish. Take a few minutes for yourself and read it. You might also scan the comments that follow as they also add value to Schwarz' piece.

And as you read, think: which do I prefer: good design, or precise craftsmanship?

While I marvel at John Economaki's handtools, I find myself compelled to agree with Schwarz over against Economaki's students. If push came to shove and I couldn't have both, I'd rather good design over precise craftsmanship (actually, if I could pull off either that would be nice!).

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