KENT CHASSON "Craftsman Style” Concert No. 99 (Engelmann/Wenge)

[geordie]

Kent, you may want to know.
http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2...ackintosh-live

[Kent Chasson]

Sad to see that. I hope it's not as bad as it looks.

On a positive note, the renovation of Wright's Johnson and Johnson building is complete and it will be open to the public again soon.

http://scjohnson.com/en/company/arch...ngs_Tower.aspx

[geordie]

Originally Posted by Kent Chasson

Sad to see that. I hope it's not as bad as it looks.

On a positive note, the renovation of Wright's Johnson and Johnson building is complete and it will be open to the public again soon.

http://scjohnson.com/en/company/arch...ngs_Tower.aspx

I fear it may be bad.

I'll look at FLW's Tower, thanks

[architype]

Originally Posted by Kent Chasson

Sad to see that. I hope it's not as bad as it looks.

On a positive note, the renovation of Wright's Johnson and Johnson building is complete and it will be open to the public again soon.

http://scjohnson.com/en/company/arch...ngs_Tower.aspx

I visited The Johnson Wax building in 1984 and it looked to be in very good shape with the exception of visible attempts to seal the pyrex tubing used for the windows and skylites.
Mr. Johnson's house, Wingspread, is nearby and worth the trip. It is one of Wrights most impressive residential designs. It also has a unique roof design w/ clearstory windows letting in light...and sometimes water. Apparently Mr. Johnson called Mr. Wright to complain that when it rained the roof would leak on his head right above his favorite chair. Mr. Wright instructed Mr. Johnson to move the chair!

I really have been enjoying this thread. Lovely work! An excellent interpretation of the Craftsman aesthetic.

[Kent Chasson]

Originally Posted by architype

... Apparently Mr. Johnson called Mr. Wright to complain that when it rained the roof would leak on his head right above his favorite chair. Mr. Wright instructed Mr. Johnson to move the chair!

I went to Taliesin West this winter and the tour guide told a few similar stories and apparently that side of Wright's personality hasn't been exaggerated. It's an interesting subject. I think there's value in being uncompromising in your vision. I doubt he would have had the same impact if he had been more practical. But I've always believed that form should follow function. At some point, it feels to me that being that uncompromising smacks more of egotism than brilliance. I'd be curious to see if any of Wright's writings speak to that. I'm interested in the other side of the argument.

Originally Posted by architype

I really have been enjoying this thread. Lovely work! An excellent interpretation of the Craftsman aesthetic.

Thanks. I appreciate that even more as I'm still fighting the finish on the top. It's possible that it will get strung up this weekend but I hesitate to even say that because this stuff seems to have an unlimited capacity to surprise me. It has great potential too, though.

[iim7V7IM7]

A cautiously optimistic photo of a finished body emerges from the Pacific Northwest...



Perhaps the stringed up prediction from its creator will come to pass...

[architype]

Originally Posted by Kent Chasson

I went to Taliesin West this winter and the tour guide told a few similar stories and apparently that side of Wright's personality hasn't been exaggerated. It's an interesting subject. I think there's value in being uncompromising in your vision. I doubt he would have had the same impact if he had been more practical. But I've always believed that form should follow function. At some point, it feels to me that being that uncompromising smacks more of egotism than brilliance. I'd be curious to see if any of Wright's writings speak to that. I'm interested in the other side of the argument.
]

I read a book that had documented Wright's corespondence w/ several of his clients. One client , (can't recall which one), wrote Mr. Wright to complain of constant overages in the budget and told him that it was unprofessional of him to have so grossly underestimated the cost of his home and he felt as though he had been baited and switched.
Mr. Wright sent a letter back to him and fired himself, saying that anyone with such a provincial attitude doesn't deserve him as his Architect.
The next letter from the client was completly apologetic and begged Mr. Wright to stay on and finish his house and included a check to cover the most recent invoice.

There were several letters between Mr. Wright and Mr. Martin, (of the Martin house in Buffalo pictured earlier in this thread), and they were quite good friends. Mr. Wright abused the friendship by asking for loans from Mr. Martin on a regular basis and Mr. Martin would send him the money. There was no evidence that Mr. Wright ever paid back any of the money. Mr. Martin finally cut him off, but mainly because he had financial troubles of his own.

I admire the genius of Wright's work, but from what I've read about him personally, I don't think he was a very good man.

[iim7V7IM7]

Agree with many comments about FLW, but why not place them in the "Prairie Style" thread? Why rain on Gus Stickley?

:-)

Seriously, I enjoyed your anecdote. He was a total heel in his personal life and with his clients. I grew up next to the architect who renovated the Guggenheim Museum in the 1960's. There were a tremendous amount of structural issues that he needed to remedy. At a few young age, before I really new who Mr. Wright was, I heard four letter words being said about him (and his work).

[architype]

Originally Posted by iim7V7IM7

Agree with many comments about FLW, but why not place them in the "Prairie Style" thread? Why rain on Gus Stickley?

You're correct! Wrong tread for FLW comments. I wonder if Mr. Stickley was a jerk?

:-)

Seriously, I enjoyed your anecdote. He was a total heel in his personal life and with his clients. I grew up next to the architect who renovated the Guggenheim Museum in the 1960's. There were a tremendous amount of structural issues that he needed to remedy. At a few young age, before I really new who Mr. Wright was, I heard four letter words being said about him (and his work).

Some of the daring structural feats that Mr. Wright incorporated have been a source of problems in many of his buildings. Fallingwater had to go through a major structural stabilization to prevent further creep of the concrete terraces.

[iim7V7IM7]

While we are chatting about FLW in this post, I really think Chasson No. 99 (Craftsman Style) has turned out to more reflect the furniture designs of Harvey Ellis / Gustav Stickley.

Chasson No. 100 (Prairie Style) which is still in its design phase, incorporates design motifs that you will see soon are a direct homage to the stained glass screens Frank Lloyd Wright.

http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=340666

It will be tough to decide between these two guitars, but somehow I'll suffer through it . Perhaps one of you fellow fans of this design movement will want one of these because alas, I am only taking one of them? I'd recommend reaching directly out to Kent to get on his "list".

The Gypsy Guitar that Bernie Lehmann is crafting for me (Roycroft) incorporates design graphical language of Elbert Hubbard and Dard Hunter.

http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=308347

[Kent Chasson]

Originally Posted by Kent Chasson

...It's possible that it will get strung up this weekend but I hesitate to even say that because this stuff seems to have an unlimited capacity to surprise me. ...

Well... at least I wasn't surprised that it surprised me again.

I don't see a lot of posts here documenting screw-ups so here goes. I really thought this wipe-on finish would work fine around the raised rosette. Instead, it gave me trouble from the start. I almost routed out the rosette two weeks ago so I could start fresh with a flat top. But it was so close to being good that I kept at it. So much for that!

It's a little scary routing a rosette out of a finished guitar but here's one way to go about it. First I made a plug that is an exact fit inside the raised edge of the rosette. One way to make a circle is to spin it around a center on a disc sander. The center adjusts so I can take off a little at a time until it fits perfectly.



I stick the plug on with double sided tape and then use my circle cutting jig on the router, spinning it around the same center.



A few passes later, the rosette is gone and I can clean up the slot by hand.



One myth about polymerized oil finish is that it sinks deep into wood adding weight and possibly changing tone for the worse. I can now say for a fact that is not true. It adheres well but does not sink in. I probably only sanded off .001" of wood to get back to a clean surface. Here's the guitar with the first couple of new coats on. I'll finish the rosette separately and install it last thing.

[iim7V7IM7]

I am very glad that Kent made this particular posting.

I think on many occasions, we as participants on the AGF “Custom Shop” tend to overly deify the mastery of the talented luthiers who share their craft with us here. A luthier being brave enough to share the “screw-up” (really an error in anticipated work flow using new techniques; raised rosette design plus hand applied oil finish) with a public audience exemplifies Kent’s confidence as a builder and a desire to document the build honestly and share lessons learned with other builders.

Some potential clients might be put off by this (oh, he made a mistake…), but in my opinion you shouldn't. Kent has been transparent with me all though out the process and has communicated both successes and struggles. As someone who’s career has been in R&D and development, this is a natural part of a process where new techniques are being tried and characterized and didn't trouble me in the least. It was the transparency in communication that really stood out. The beauty and craftsmanship (the “what”) of his work speaks for itself. But it is the journey to get to the end result that has stood out to me (the “how” and the “why”). This hidden aspect of a custom build that is to me essential in a luthier/client relationship. Particularly when working from afar. For this, I rate Kent with an A+.

I think these types of construction/finish issues occur rarely when a craftsman is working on the routine (e.g. make one like you made for someone else). But custom work in some cases is about pushing the envelope from the routine to create a client/builder’s vision. This project from the start has exemplified this spirit. Kudos to Kent!

My $.02

[fountainhead]

The hallmark of a true professional is the willingness to admit a fault, and the ability to correct it! Bravo Mr. Chasson!!!!!!

[iim7V7IM7]

Remember No. 99?

After a 6-week pause to create No. 100, Kent will be getting back to finish No. 99 next week. In the mean time, its time to recharge his batteries looking at things without the aid of shop magnifying glasses...:-)

[iim7V7IM7]

Kent rubbed out the neck and he feels that it "feels great" (Tony-the-Tiger). He also used steel wool to take the gloss of the Wenge headplate veneer and with wax on the fingerboard, the hue, value and sheen are now all much closer.



Kent also made an ebony truss rod cover and installed the Schertler tuners with the custom ebony buttons which he crafted.



Kent said that grinding off the flange of the tuner bushings was a "piece of cake" and he was really happy with the planar face of the Wenge headplate veneer with no visible bushings. Using this method, the bushings wont come loose and work their way up the shaft as sometimes happens.