Synopses & Reviews
A new classic in the tradition of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance and Shop Class as Soulcraft, Handmade: Creative Focus in the Age of Distraction will help creative people in any field reconnect to the source of their creativity and revitalize their creative energy.
In Handmade, master craftsman Gary Rogowski confronts the greatest obstacles to creative focus in the modern age: distraction; pointless busyness; fear of failure; and the devil of self-doubt that tells you your work doesn’t matter. Handmade shows that the path around these obstacles is the act of creative work itself. The discipline of working with one’s hands, mind and heart to create unnecessarily beautiful things shapes the builder into a more complete human being.
Handmade tells the story of how the young Rogowski, an intellectual college graduate with no formal training in woodworking, became a craftsman through years of persistent labor, which taught him patience, resilience, tolerance for failure, and a love of pursuing beauty and mastery for their own sakes.
Rogowski punctuates the story of his growth as a craftsman with accounts of his hiking and mountaineering expeditions with his friend Wheaton, who taught him a different kind of perseverance and patience in the face of danger, discomfort, and the wild beauty of nature. In telling his stories, Rogowski reflects deeply on the lessons he has learned and presents a series of profound meditations on the eternal value of work, creativity, human fallibility, and the stubborn pursuit of quality.
Part autobiography, part guide to creativity, and part guide to living an authentic life, Handmade is a book for craftspeople, artists and anyone who seeks clarity, purpose and creativity in their work.
Audience: Artists, craftspeople, woodworkers, creative professionals, and anyone developing their creativity.
Review
"'Do good work. There will be evidence.' We would all do well to heed the advice of Gary Rogowski. He is one of those rare individuals who has come to peace with excellence. In this charming tale, he reveals a few of his secrets and plenty of his mistakes, so the rest of us might listen and learn. From tales 'of wood' to tales 'in the woods,' Rogowski's aim is true." Joyce Cherry Cresswell, author of A Great Length of Time, 2017 Oregon Book Awards winner in fiction
Review
"Gary Rogowski loves to rock climb and also has a deep love for woodworking. Both disciplines require courage, concentration and a developed sense of method; one wrong step, one wrong cut. Gary's book delves into this synchronicity with enjoyable anecdotes of climbing and woodworking interlaced with serious discussion of the importance of focus, practice, patience and how we become masters of craft." Roland Johnson, contributing editor, Fine Woodworking, and author of Taunton's Complete Illustrated Guide to Bandsaws
Review
"In Handmade, Rogowski writes of his love of tools, patience, discipline, the beauty and behavior of wood, learning to forgive his daily mistakes at the bench, why he believes in maintaining exceptionally high standards, and so much more of use to all who care deeply about craft and practice." Foreword Reviews
Review
"Gary Rogowski leads us gently but surely upon the path to a type of success we may not have previously considered. (Hint: it involves blisters.)" Nick Offerman, author of Paddle Your Own Canoe
About the Author
Gary Rogowski is a furniture maker, designer, teacher and author. He is also a playwright, essayist, and novelist. His previous books include the best-selling Complete Illustrated Guide to Joinery. Rogowski is the founder and director of The Northwest Woodworking Studio, A School for Woodworkers.
Gary Rogowski on PowellsBooks.Blog
There is no good excuse for putting work off until tomorrow. Tomorrow, when you will have more time; tomorrow, when everyone will have stopped demanding your attention; tomorrow, when you will really try to push through your mistakes at this stuff that you think you want to be good at. Your time will always be stretched, especially if you’re a curious sort of person...
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