[Woodcarver] Re: Master Carver Trivia

[OLD JOE]

The following is in answer to my question to a nephew who is attending a 3 year Carving and Chair making school in Sweden.
I recently met a master carver from Denmark, but I haven't heard of any here in Sweden. Both the gesäll letter, journeyman's license, and the master's letter are institutions which were near extinct until about 10 years ago. Here in Sweden, within the carpentry branch, they are viewed as both expensive and relatively unimportant. This however is changing. It is becoming more and more common that people are completing a gesäll project and even masters projects. It is still very expensive and a cumbersome process. On the European continent however the situation is a bit different. I know that in Germany a master's letter is essential for conduction business. I have also heard that it costs about 5 times as much in Germany as it does here in Sweden.  My guess is that as the number of people who work in these industries shrinks the demand for quality control will increase.

A journeyman's license is awarded after the completion of a gesäll project. These projects are usually between 300-800 hours and are required to include certain elements which are viewed as difficult. For a cabinet maker these are dovetailing, at least one door and some intarsia. The difficulty is often finding a project which is complicated enough to be accepted as a project. Most people who attempt this test have had at least 3 years of schooling, or four years of apprenticeship. I have a friend who is currently working on his gesäll project and should be finished in the next few weeks. He has promised to send me a picture. I will forward it when I receive it. From what I have seen of the project it has great promise. 

Take care

Dirk 

Old Joe (Joe Brott)
for Len Dillon roughouts, click: www.diamondd.org
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Bill Judt 
  To: [Woodcarver] 
  Sent: Tuesday, June 15, 2004 10:58 PM
  Subject: Re: [Woodcarver] Bill's Gems


  To make a DONATION to the Mailing List using PayPal OR regular mail, click this link: http://wwwoodcarver.com/WWWList/WWWList.html




------------------------------------------------------------------------------


  Jean:

  Facets - what I call bevels - on the edges of objects are MOST important in the carving is to have definition. I mention this in some detail in my second book.
  Bevels do not take a whole lot of time to carve, either.

  >From one mortal to another <grinning>

  Bill

  W.F. Judt,
  46 Harvard Cres,
  Saskatoon, Saskatchewan,
  S7H3R1
  PH: 306-373-6649
  Email: bjudt at sasktel.net
  Website: http://www.wwwoodcarver.com

  On Jun 15, 2004, at 10:55 AM, Jean Athey wrote:


    To make a DONATION to the Mailing List using PayPal OR regular mail, click this link: http://wwwoodcarver.com/WWWList/WWWList.html

    Hi Bill,
    Thanks for letting us mortals see your latest work. If
    anyone needs a primer on the importance of carving
    facets to catch the light, they only need look at the
    foliage on the two trees in the upper right and left
    corners of your "Beal Award" carving. Both pieces are
    spectacular.
    Jean Athey




    __________________________________
    Do you Yahoo!?
    Yahoo! Mail is new and improved - Check it out!
    http://promotions.yahoo.com/new_mail
    _______________________________________________
    Woodcarver mailing list
    Woodcarver at six.pairlist.net
    http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/woodcarver






------------------------------------------------------------------------------


  _______________________________________________
  Woodcarver mailing list
  Woodcarver at six.pairlist.net
  http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/woodcarver
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/woodcarver/attachments/20040616/5c040cc2/attachment.htm