Thread: You win some, you lose some...

I would have loved to have been able to see these in the … er… flesh?

Regardless of who did or didn’t win I just wish my skills were high enough to be able to design and build something judged worthy of entry.

That is a great set, and I like the small box with it.

I can understand your disappointment. I also have no issue losing, but if it seems the winner does not even fit the main criteria, then that is a little bitter.

I would have loved to see the entries, but we will only make it there on Monday. I hope it'll still be worth it.

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It’s ok Ian
Your a winner in our eyes(Tho I see someone else has commented about your thread, Who if my memory survives me right won a certain competition “Once”[emoji849][emoji849] not that I’m jealous or anything.

They look fantastic, an I love the whole Box lot idea.
Great for tool making I reckon.

Cheers Matt.

thats the ting about competitions the judges may be fheads. Bloody beautiful work IanW!

Looks like a winner to me! You've got my vote.

Originally Posted by Cklett

......I would have loved to see the entries, but we will only make it there on Monday. I hope it'll still be worth it....

You will, Ck - all of the entries have to remain on show 'til the end.

You may not get as much choice with all the bits of wood for sale though. By the time I left there were a lot of old blokes staggering out with various bits of wood tucked under their arms (& one with sensible foresight was dragging a little garden trailer full!). However, there were lots of interesting bits & bobs in various stalls. Not cheap (they've certainly taken account of inflation over the 3 years since the last show!), but you won't find stuff like "orange boxwood" & "currant bush" in any retail store...

A word of warning: I bought a piece of alleged Indian ebony - it was very rough-sawn, felt dense enough & looked very dark. When I got it home & planed it, it felt weird to plane & the surface was quite coarse-grained, unlike any ebony I've seen before. I may be wrong, but I strongly suspect it's some other species that has bee dyed.

I was a little disappointed at the variety & quality of woodcraft on show - I was probably expecting too much after the long covid-induced drought of wood shows. There was very little club work displayed & what little I saw was anything but fresh or original. However, it was a good day out for me. I had a chat with a bloke who is making brass & steel planes (not sure what you's call them, sort of a cross between English thumb planes & a mitre plane, but done in a more contemporary style). They are very nicely made & quite appealing little things, I didn't ask the price 'cos I knew it would be well out of my range (& because I do have one or two planes at home already).

left early enough this morning to have an easy trip up. Coming home (slower, but not too bad), the north-bound traffic was nose-to-tail the whole way & moving at a very slow pace - I was very glad I wasn't going that way!

Cheers,

Just to make it clear I'm not snivelling about not winning the prize - I've entered a few competitions over the years & even won a couple but missed out on many more, so I'm certainly not going to suffer any deep depression over it. It's up to the judges to decide, and their decision is final, but I was mildly annoyed that a netsuke carving won (yet again!) when the whole competition was suppose to have this "dovetail" theme, and at least two other ebtries in the category that I though worth considering did at least match the criteria. I certainly won't bother entering again, unless I suddenly decide to take up netsuke.

But I appreciate the moral support, a pat on the back from fellow hand-tool tragics is as good as a win.....

Cheers,

They must be a tough crowd, those judges

As Matt said, you are a winner in our eyes Ian , nice work there mate !!

Originally Posted by IanW

I had a chat with a bloke who is making brass & steel planes (not sure what you's call them, sort of a cross between English thumb planes & a mitre plane, but done in a more contemporary style). They are very nicely made & quite appealing little things, I didn't ask the price 'cos I knew it would be well out of my range (& because I do have one or two planes at home already).

I think I have an idea who you mean. There is guy "Ironbarktools" who makes block planes, which would fit your description. I see him on Instagram and he has a stand there. Planes and squares. The planes he make are looking slick and have an interesting way of holding the wedge.

If we are talking of the same guy.

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Yep, that's the bloke, Ck. I'd forgotten the name but your mention reminded me.

And before I get sued, I'd better pull back just a little on my suspicion about the ebony. I did some searching on the web & it would seem that Indian ebony is a little coarser and less dense than African ebonies. However, it's also the same species as "Ceylon ebony" and I have had some of that (obtained at the source!) and it was much finer grained than the stick I bought today, so I'll remain just a little bit suspicious....
Cheers,

Ian

It must be very disappointing to lose out to an entry that does not comply. Hmmm. Not conducive to entering for the future. Do the organisers publish pictures of the winners?

Regards
Paul

Ian, first off, your work is stupendous - world class - and not coming first in a competition does not take that away. Secondly, it is not always possible to get into the heads of judges or to fathom their reasoning. It is likely that they may fail to see what you see, and this can be the source of much frustration and disappointment.

I recall one WA competition, many years ago, when I entered my newly-made and hand-made homage of Hans Wegner's The Chair. I even added an original The Chair to show how close it was. I did not place. Later I asked the judges what their thoughts were. They said it was a copy and not original. First place went to a copy of a Sam Maloof rocker, which was built from a kit. I bit my tongue and walked away. Sigh.

I have been delighted to view your work for many years. You are number one as far as I am concerned.

Regards from Perth

Derek

Originally Posted by derekcohen

........ I asked the judges what their thoughts were. They said it was a copy and not original. First place went to a copy of a Sam Maloof rocker, which was built from a kit. I bit my tongue and walked away. Sigh......

I think that's what you might call a bit of cognitive dissonance!

Yeah well, as you know, judging any competition is a fraught business, but sometimes you really wonder "what the judges were thinking", be it a small-town comp or the Archibald prize. Originality is often said to be a major criterion in judging work for any crafty competition, but that can be a really tough one it depends on the prior experience of the judges & I know it's easy enough to have blind spots, even when you think you know a little about a subject. I think folks running competitions of craft/art work should spell out clearly what the jugding criteria are, and make sure the judges are aware of them, & possibly more importantly, capable of evaluating them. Many of us on this forum (& elsewhere) would spot a Maloof knock-off from a mile away, but there must be many more who've never heard of him (though you would hope such people weren't asked to judge a furniture exhibition!). To see his original rocker for the first time one IS struck by its 'originality' insofar as some of the shaping & his joint system goes, but his joint was really an extension of one of the joints Wegner used (& was his original?). I can tie myself in knots trying to think that one through...

For entrants, following the supposed criteria can be restrictive and it can take a lot of thought to produce an entry that complies with the rules but still has the qualities of a potential winner, so I do think the stated rules should be observed in the judging. I could not find any pictures of the other entries, but you can see the winners of each category on their facebook page, try here.

I repeat, I'm not broken up about not getting a prize, I honestly believe at least one other entry deserved the prize because it was a worthy piece in its own right & the maker did comply with the supposed theme. It will be interesting to see what the "people's choice" turns out to be.

Cheers,

Tough gig Ian. Maybe they couldn't see your dovetails! I am amazed at your patience, working at such a small scale. And your proportions remain true. Well done for still putting yourself (and your work) out there. Thanks for inspiring the rest of us.