Why We Make Things and Why it Matters : the Education of a Craftsman

Description

"Why do we make things? Why does it matter that we make things well? This is a book about the process of creation and what it means to be a craftsman ina mass-produced world. For woodworker Peter Korn, the challenging work of bringing something meaningful into existence is exactly what generates the authenticity, meaning, and fulfilment for which many of us yearn. This is not a 'how-to' book. Korn wants to get at the 'why' of craft in particular, and the satisfactions of creative work in general, to understand their essential nature. What does the process of making things reveal to us about ourselves? How do the products of creative work inform society? Korn draws on four decades of hands-on experience to answer these questions"--Publisher's description. Read more... Abstract: Why do we make things? Why do we choose the emotionally and physically demanding work of bringing new objects into the world with creativity and skill? Part memoir, part polemic, part philosophical reflection, this is a book about the process of creation and what it means to be a craftsman in a mass produced society. Read more... Content: A shared hunger -- Hammering out a vocation -- The seductive ideology of a craft -- Live from New York -- Heart, head and hand -- Thinking with things -- Exercising my voice -- The inward migration of truth -- Second epiphany -- Mapping a craftsman's mind -- A miracle at the heart of the ordinary -- Creating a school -- The creative cycle -- A good life.