All Discussions Tagged 'Moon' - crafthaus2024-03-29T14:19:40Zhttp://crafthaus.ning.com/forum/topic/listForTag?groupUrl=crescent-moon-armoury&tag=Moon&feed=yes&xn_auth=noJoy of the Arttag:crafthaus.ning.com,2014-07-13:2104389:Topic:4886402014-07-13T04:24:59.885ZParker Brownhttp://crafthaus.ning.com/profile/ParkerBrown
<p align="center"><i>If you will be renowned in the art, you’ll never be poor,</i><i> </i><i><br></br> in any place. This virtue is so glorious that,</i><i> </i><i><br></br> if even once poverty would show you his cards,</i><i> </i><i><br></br> then wealth will embrace you thanks to your art.”</i><i> </i><i><br></br> - Maestro Filippo Vadi, Liber de Arte Gladiatoria Dimicandi, c.1482</i></p>
<p align="center"><b> </b></p>
<p>Let’s face it, most of us think we understand the realities of armour. In reality,…</p>
<p align="center"><i>If you will be renowned in the art, you’ll never be poor,</i><i> </i><i><br/> in any place. This virtue is so glorious that,</i><i> </i><i><br/> if even once poverty would show you his cards,</i><i> </i><i><br/> then wealth will embrace you thanks to your art.”</i><i> </i><i><br/> - Maestro Filippo Vadi, Liber de Arte Gladiatoria Dimicandi, c.1482</i></p>
<p align="center"><b> </b></p>
<p>Let’s face it, most of us think we understand the realities of armour. In reality, there is a plethora of fallacious ideas regarding the function and form of this historical artform. Modern businesses produce lines of “armour” that range from the inaccurate to the absurd. Unknowing practitioners, students and collectors purchase this armour and develop inaccurate ideas due to the incorrect fit, weight and mechanical functioning of the “armour”. This, in turn, feeds back to the businesses that then produce altered designs based on inaccurate information. Thus, a feedback loop of self-perpetuating misinformation has come to dominate the armour reproduction industry at the cost of popular misrepresentation of the Renaissance European martial arts.</p>
<p>Let’s imagine 500 years from now; our descendants express an interest in learning to operate automobiles and there are only fragmentary decorative Jaguars and Lamborghinis in museums. None of them actually run or can have gasoline put in them for the sake of preservation. Cheaper automobiles have long since been driven, repaired, resold, and scraped. Their remains are the recycled additions to future building projects.</p>
<p><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058596101?profile=original" width="300" class="align-center"/></p>
<p>Yet, private individuals attempt to build automobiles from scratch by looking at pictures of well -preserved examples. These intrepid individuals have never sat in an original car, so they do not realize the sheet steel used on them was thin and structurally well designed to be lightweight with built in crumple zones. Future craftspeople might make these reproduction automobiles using the wrong materials. Paneling might be made of extremely thick sheet metal, resulting in vehicles 2 or 3 times the weight of the originals. Amateur driving clubs that deliberately drive and ram each other with their massive “cars” without sufficient damage verify the erroneous practice of overweight design to answer the need for protection. </p>
<p>But these future “cars” can only run for a few hours before running out of gasoline, leaving our descendants to believe we must have all been extremely wealthy to afford running such fuel inefficient machines. They may marvel that a civilization capable of the Internet and pioneering space travel produced such inefficient means of transport. Thus, craftsmen will use the feedback from these amateur “car” drivers to produce lines of ever-inaccurate vehicles. </p>
<p>Over decades, people will attend Post-Modern Faires where they will hold bizarre demolition derbies with drivers operating Lamborghini-esque tanks. People will wear costumes that feature fantastical versions of our own jeans and tee shirts that are uncomfortable and impractical. You will see individuals wearing WWII era military uniforms, combined with a cowboy hat, Ugg boots and all while carrying peace-tied AK-47’s…because it’s a well known “fact” that our ancestors (us) were nasty and brutish. It all makes sense because everyone knows how ignorant, stupid, uncomfortable, impractical and backward we were in ye olde 2014.</p>
<p>This analogy is a bit tongue-in-cheek, but it demonstrates a serious point. We give this same treatment to our ancestors of 500 years ago based on our own collective erroneous assumptions. The Medieval and Renaissance world created the cathedrals of Europe, developed the beginnings of our modern scientific methodologies and created the navigational technologies that lead to our eventual exploration of the stars. They deserve better.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058591807?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058591807?profile=original" width="228" class="align-left"/></a> </p>
<p>The armouring industry in Europe was just as massive and important to ruling princes and states as the modern military industrial complex. One should not underestimate the methods used to produce the billions of rings of maille, the millions of intricate parts of suits of armour and the vast supply network of metalsmiths, miners, woodworkers, tanners, millers, and scribes needed to keep the industry going. Whole cities devoted themselves to armour production, much as the city of Detroit developed around automobile production. The guild systems of Europe tightly controlled and managed standardizations in quality, quantity, employment and production. Such an organized and powerful industry as armour-smithing would not have produced items of inferior quality and ability in service to nobility, wealthy mercenaries, monarchs, popes, emperors and state governments.</p>
<p>The common belief that armour turned mounted and dismounted men-at-arms into walking juggernauts barreling their way through the battlefield has been soundly disproven over the past decades through practical and theoretical demonstrations. Armour was part of a fighting system and was not wholly defensive in nature. Once a historical martial arts practitioner understands proper period fighting, armour’s true offensive role becomes evident. In un-armoured combat, the weapon is the only perfectly safe place to bind with an opponent. Armour turns the entire body into a safe zone for binding or parrying a blow. It increases the role of body mechanics exponentially. With armour and proper training, the entire body is a weapon.</p>
<p>The expense of armour is just as prohibitive today as it was historically. Many modern Renaissance martial arts practitioners must limit their practice to un-armoured combat due to cost. This is not a particular issue since a large proportion of the historical martial arts treatises researched by modern students cover un-armoured combat. Those who choose to dedicate the time and resources to research armoured combat require quality equipment, just as un-armoured students do. But while there have been outstanding developments in practice steel weapons over the past decades, the opportunity seems to have been missed in the production of armour.</p>
<p>Just as there are many talented, highly skilled and informed armour-smiths currently practicing throughout the United States, Europe, India and Asia. But these skilled individuals are being drowned out by vast quantities of poorly produced pieces that amount to little more than costumed props. They are cheap, easy to produce, easy to purchase online and they seep into the martial arts community due to their ubiquitous nature.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058594385?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="750" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058594385?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="414" class="align-center" height="267"/></a></p>
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<p>To catalog the full range of inaccuracies in modern costume armour production would be a mammoth undertaking and, within the confines of this blog, a futile enterprise. Instead, comparing one example piece with a historical original can give a general understanding of the fallacies practiced by mass-production houses.</p>
<p>The “suit” pictured above on the left is advertised as wearable and “battle-ready”. It is neither of these things. It is a waste of money due to its uncomfortable, heavy and impractical nature. Uninformed individuals made it based on unsubstantiated examinations of historical originals. It’s manufactured using inappropriate techniques and no experience in actual martial combat. This armour costume (and others like it) would constrict the wearer to the point where they could not move properly and execute historical techniques to their proper extent. Sadly, it is what so many people purchase as real practical armour. Compare it to a piece of original German armour from the 15<sup>th</sup> century on the right. It is obvious that the first piece attempts to emulate the second, but at a sever loss of correct biological geometry. Medieval and Renaissance artisans knew the functions of the human body. Human proportion was part of the artistic revival that defined the Renaissance.</p>
<p>A feedback loop of misinformation has lead to modern armour that is as far removed from historical reality as the future “cars” I described in the opening analogy. Armour produced by modern businesses are often made of cheap, inferior grades of steel. They are either too thin or too thick and use modern fabrication methods more appropriate for mass production. Even when there is an attempt to produce accurate armour, it tends to miss the mark due to the needs of an uninformed wide market. The interest is in quantity of production instead of quality.</p>
<p>The modern “armour” on the left shows two very common misinformed practices. First, the breastplate is too long in the torso, ending well past the body’s center of mass. A wearer could not bend or move properly while wearing this breastplate. It’s simply not modeled to fit a realistic human torso; it is a costume designed to look good on a website so someone will click “add to cart”. Secondly, in its attempt to emulate the fluting commonly used in Gothic armour, the manufacturers resorted to the use of a bead roller to produce the flutes. Bead rollers weren’t used in metal fabrication until the mid 19<sup>th</sup> century. </p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058591227?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="400" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058591227?profile=RESIZE_480x480" width="276" class="align-center" height="207"/></a></p>
<p>The use of a historically and technically inappropriate tool results in armour that is limited by the automated mechanical nature chosen by the craftsperson. Historical 14<sup>th</sup>, 15<sup>th</sup> and 16<sup>th</sup> century armourers were not participants in the later 18<sup>th</sup> and 19<sup>th</sup> century Industrial Revolution. Medieval and Renaissance metal fabrication practiced a completely different methodology that, while labor intensive, was rooted in a holistic thought process based on skill rather than hyper-specification of labor. When a modern craftsperson replaces the capabilities of an automatic power tool built to perform one standardized task and embraces their own wide-ranging capabilities, they take the first step into the real world inhabited by their crafts ancestors. It’s a difficult step to take, but it moves ones work out of the realm of cheap imitation and into a higher plane of true art. Valid martial arts must be practiced with tools created by valid craft arts.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058593729?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058593729?profile=original" width="257" class="align-center" height="211"/></a></p>
<p>This is a very difficult task for inhabitants of the modern mass-produced world. The Industrial Revolution permitted humanity to own more items produced using less labor and we are the children of that system. Modern culture has indoctrinated a sense of entitlement to products our ancestors could have only dreamed of. If someone wants their very own suit of armour, it’s made available through the laws of supply and demand. Armour-like objects are affordable to a wide consumer base by using cheap sources of labor and taking varying degrees of technical and physical shortcuts. Online debit and credit card transactions make the interaction between producer and consumer even easier. A cheap facsimile of the armour of our ancestors is easily accessible through Visa or MasterCard.</p>
<p>Our ancestors knew the true value of ability was not purchased, it was learned. If we want to avoid the future reputation of ignorance, stupidity, and impracticality we ignorantly accuse our ancestors of, perhaps we need to reevaluate the wisdom of those same ancestors. Otherwise, we doom our memory to the absurdities evidenced in future equivalents of Renaissance Faires, and bad Hollywood movies. When we allow mistaken interpretations of history to enter the popular conscious, we doom ourselves to relive a history based on those mistakes. That is when ignorance becomes truly dangerous.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058593850?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="750" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058593850?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="570" class="align-center" height="241"/></a></p>
<p></p> Why I’m Tired of the Zombie Apocalypse (and it hasn’t even started yet)tag:crafthaus.ning.com,2014-06-24:2104389:Topic:4869182014-06-24T17:31:58.839ZParker Brownhttp://crafthaus.ning.com/profile/ParkerBrown
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<p>Being a craftsperson/maker/artisan/artist is a rather unique profession. Many people today have limited experience in (truly) handmade objects and their interactions with us are often the first and only exposure to the craft world. For an armourer such as myself, that exposure is exponentially reduced by the specificity of my field. I am part of a sub-genre within a sub-genre. Explaining to people what I actually do is similar to Lord Helmet’s scene with Lonestar in…</p>
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<p>Being a craftsperson/maker/artisan/artist is a rather unique profession. Many people today have limited experience in (truly) handmade objects and their interactions with us are often the first and only exposure to the craft world. For an armourer such as myself, that exposure is exponentially reduced by the specificity of my field. I am part of a sub-genre within a sub-genre. Explaining to people what I actually do is similar to Lord Helmet’s scene with Lonestar in “Spaceballs”.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058583900?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="750" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058583900?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="626" class="align-center" height="166"/></a></p>
<p>It’s a reasonable assumption that, in the course of a conversation, people ask questions that are… less than well-informed. This is to be expected and I’ve learned to address these as attempts by the other person to identify and learn. But, by paying attention to the questions asked, I understand what needs to be addressed regarding my field. So, without further ado, here are the top questions and statements I receive as a modern armourer.</p>
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<p><b>“I Bet You’re Ready For the Zombie Apocalypse!”</b></p>
<p> It is an interesting statement of modern American culture that one of our most popular fictional tropes involves the breakdown of society due to unforeseen overwhelming force. Infrastructures that we normally trust completely in our everyday lives break down with catastrophic and society-changing results. In most of these fictional scenarios, the survivors’ existences are enabled because of a reversion to older technologies and systems of governance. </p>
<p>This fascination with traditional skills finding relevance in a post-apocalyptic world leads to a very common statement given to me by well-meaning individuals: “I bet you’re ready for the zombie apocalypse”! This comment is very revealing and I’m sure most people are unaware of the subtext behind it. My metal fabrication skills might come in handy, but not nearly as much as a trained medical practitioner or anyone capable of locating and purifying water systems. Yet, the first thing people assume are: instead of practical necessities, they need a means to commit or survive violence.</p>
<p>Armour certainly fits into that category of need, but my interests as an armoursmith don’t come from necessity or survival. It comes from the perspective of an artisan. Realistically, I’m the last person you need to come to in case of any kind of outbreak. In my opinion, the modern interest in zombie/apocalyptic scenarios has nothing to do with necessity; it’s a twisted new form of romanticism. When these stories are told, it’s never from the perspective of the everyday victim, but rather an Übermensch into which the reader/viewer can insert themselves. This is simply a common desire to become more than one’s self within the safety of fantasy.</p>
<p>So, when someone tells me I’m ready for the zombie apocalypse, in reality they’re saying they identify a little bit of that desire for betterment in my skills. They can’t identify with my accomplishments directly in present reality, so it’s safer to see it from the realm of fantasy. Regardless, I take it as a complement.</p>
<p>But please don’t come to my house in the case of a real outbreak.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058586299?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058586299?profile=original" width="366" class="align-center" height="259"/></a></p>
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<p><b>“Isn’t That Stuff Heavy?”</b></p>
<p>Yes.</p>
<p>I want you to do me a big favor. Take off your clothes. No, seriously! Take off your clothes and weigh them. If it’s wintertime, you normally wear long underwear, shirt, pants, socks, shoes, jacket and possibly a cap. The combined weight is between 5-8 lbs. A gallon of milk weighs 8.6 lbs. and that’s considered heavy! So, why are we not toppling over from the weight of our heavy clothes?</p>
<p>Most people handle armour the same way they handle a gallon of milk. They pick it up using one of the weakest muscles in our body, the bicep. The sensation of “heavy” is a relative term. If you distribute that 8.6 lb. milk about your body (pour it on your head), it’s not going to feel as heavy. Like your magical milk suit, armour works best when it’s worn. It doesn’t work if you stand around holding it.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058588427?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058588427?profile=original" width="340" class="align-center" height="247"/></a></p>
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<p>A full suit of plate armour can be heavy. In general, full European plate and maille armour from the 15<sup>th</sup> century would have weighed no more than 1/3 of the wearer’s body weight. So, a stout man weighing 200 lbs. could support armour weighing 66 lbs. Before you become aghast, realize that the modern U.S. infantryman carries 75-100 lbs. of gear…and they’re not nearly as armoured as their 15<sup>th</sup> century counterpart.</p>
<p>So, yes, armour is heavy…but a trained man-at-arms was used to wearing the armour. They were no more at risk of toppling over in a clutter of steel than we are of toppling over in a clutter of winter clothing….except for Ralph’s little brother in “A Christmas Story”.</p>
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<p><b>“I’d Just Use A Gun/ I’ll Just Shoot You.”</b></p>
<p><b><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058586824?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="170" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058586824?profile=RESIZE_180x180" width="170" class="align-center"/></a></b></p>
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<p>Wow.</p>
<p>There are few statements that actually make me mad, but this is one of the biggest. I actually receive this statement more often than people might believe. It’s the evil cousin to the zombie apocalypse statement above and it’s rooted in the same psychological undertone. Both are originated from the need to develop from the Übermensch ideological sense of self. But while the zombie apocalypse comment derives from a desire to better one’s self, the “just shoot you” comment assumes an already established superiority. Unfortunately, that sense of superiority is rooted in an acquired technology rather than developed skill.</p>
<p>There are a lot of people in the world that own hammers, in fact I’d say most people have access to one in some form or fashion. Hammers are great, especially when you need to apply specific force to something. If you don’t have a hammer, you can improvise with a rock, but it’s just so well designed for what it does!</p>
<p>Owning a hammer does not make me a metalsmith. Owning a weapon (not just a firearm) does not make one a warrior or a soldier.</p>
<p>By stating that you would “just use a gun” at anyone producing a historical and technologically obsolete item like plate armour, you are completely missing the point. Most people drive automobiles for their transportation, so why would one ever learn the equestrian arts? I don’t learn historical metal arts because I think they’re going to make me safer or more dangerous. If I’m in need of real defense, I have my own firearms, practice martial arts, have an alarm system and, most importantly, pay taxes to support local law enforcement and a national military.</p>
<p>I make armour because it’s beautiful. It makes me happy to learn a historical technique and realize that I’m having a dialog with other artisans from hundreds of years ago. It acknowledges that while our beings may be mortal and finite, ideas and expression have a much longer shelf life. A statement like “I’d just use a gun” assumes superiority because of an ability to destroy. The irony is that it’s based upon a technology that required creativity in order to exist. Which is the more powerful?</p>
<p><b>“Oh, Cool! Samurai Armour!”</b></p>
<p>Okay, I’ll admit, I kind of have an axe to grind with this one (no pun intended) As many of my fellow historical martial arts practitioners can attest, if anyone mentions swords or armour to the average layperson, one culture dominates all popular conceptions of skill and craftsmanship: feudal Japan.</p>
<p>Historical Japanese arms and armour are amazing feats of technological and artistic skill. But their use in modern popular film has placed an extremely unrealistic set of standards upon the metallurgical realties of these beautiful and functional works of traditional art. Instead of admiring the real skills required to produce and use a Japanese sword, false skillsets are concocted, such as the ability to cut through darn near anything, including large moving vehicles! This is simply not possible regardless of how well any sword is made.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058584082?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="750" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058584082?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="403" class="align-center" height="202"/></a></p>
<p>At a recent event in Houston, Texas, I had multiple individuals come up to the newly finished Kunst Schott von Hellengen breastplate (the same one I’ve detailed in this blog) and declare that it is, in fact, a Japanese samurai armour. I smiled and presented them with an image of the original German piece along with a written description of the piece’s provenance. Many acknowledge their surprise and walked away with a broadened horizon, but there were at least 3 individuals that proceeded to argue. Even with documented proof that the original design was from the 15<sup>th</sup> century armour production centers in Nuremburg, German, these three argued that the Europeans learned all of their skills of plate armour production from Asia, so it must therefore be of Japanese provenance.</p>
<p>I don’t even know where to start…</p>
<p>Just like with all other cultures, Japanese armour has a myriad of types and periods reflecting their changing needs of defense. In the late 16<sup>th</sup> and early 17<sup>th</sup> centuries, a particular style of armour, labeled the “nanban” (南蛮) period, shows the importation of European armour into Japan. “Nanban” translates into “foreign barbarian”. European armour was brought in by Portugese missionaries and merchants and quickly adopted into the traditional forms of armour. This adopted Spanish conquistador helmet (<i>morion</i>) shows both European influences as well as the traditional use of Japanese cord-joined lamellar to protect the neck.</p>
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<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058586457?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058586457?profile=original" width="236" class="align-left" height="321"/></a>The interesting phenomenon is that this cultural trade was not reciprocal. Elements of Japanese armour weren’t incorporated into European armour simply because it wasn’t designed to deal with the super weapon of the period: firearms. Japanese armour is excellent at defending against other Japanese weapons such as the <i>katana</i> and the bow and arrow, but European firearms simply had much more kinetic energy. By the 16<sup>th</sup> century, European armour had started to address the threat posed by firearms and, quite simply, the Japanese weren’t going to turn their nose at a system that worked!</p>
<p>But, films and fiction continue to persist. If any character is going to carry a sword or wear armour, it must be Japanese. As my three tormentors from Houston pointed out, only in Asia was the technological understanding of metal joined with the honor required to have superior craftsmanship.</p>
<p>Yeah…because everyone knows Germans hate fine craftsmanship.</p>
<p>There are plenty of other challenging aspects to being an armourer and they are all simply part of the experience. If anyone is interested in being an armourer, they must learn to operate in a multitude of roles. One of those roles, being an educator, is played every time someone asks a question about armour. Each time I can talk someone about my work, it’s a potential teaching moment. But more importantly, it’s the questions I’m asked that sometimes educate me. Sometimes the greatest skills acquired by a craftsperson don’t come from the application of the hand, but the application of the mind.</p> The Kunst Schott von Hellingen Breastplate Part IXtag:crafthaus.ning.com,2014-06-12:2104389:Topic:4858752014-06-12T05:46:02.731ZParker Brownhttp://crafthaus.ning.com/profile/ParkerBrown
<p>With the conclusion of three conferences in two months in two states, the long awaited blog is back! To continue with the construction of the Kunst Schott von Hellingen Breastplate, we last left off with the individual plates ready for polishing, decoration and patination.</p>
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<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058577090?profile=original" target="_self"><img class="align-center" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058577090?profile=original" width="440"></img></a></p>
<p>The original breastplate features an engraving of Kunst Schott’s family coat of…</p>
<p>With the conclusion of three conferences in two months in two states, the long awaited blog is back! To continue with the construction of the Kunst Schott von Hellingen Breastplate, we last left off with the individual plates ready for polishing, decoration and patination.</p>
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<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058577090?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058577090?profile=original" width="440" class="align-center"/></a></p>
<p>The original breastplate features an engraving of Kunst Schott’s family coat of arms. However, while this engraving’s historical provenance is uncertain, the feature appealed to my client and he agreed that he wanted his coat of arms on his armour. After a little research, I picked up my can of Krylon high heat matte white spray paint and applied coverage to the upper area of the breastplate. The matte white surface is excellent drawing surface which allows for detailed planning for the design. Once a pencil sketch is made, the lines are gone over with a sharpened steel pointed tip which scratches fine lines through the paint. The rest of the process is a simple 4 hour acid etching using undiluted ferric chloride! Results are historically accurate and comparable to many similar etchings found in museums.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058580286?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058580286?profile=original" width="441" class="align-center"/></a></p>
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<p>The next decorative step uses matching chased areas of the overlapping tassets. Chasing was a commonly used technique in armoursmithing to provide structural rigidity to individual plates without adding weight. German Gothic armour was famous for its use and the craftspeople at the Nuremburg armoury would have been quite familiar in its use. However, this armour is emblematic of the Transitional style because it contains so little of the technique in respect to the preceding Gothic and antecedent Maximillian style. But, what few chased embellishment there is serves a purpose to strengthen the two bottom lames of the tassets. The process itself is rather simple. Once the lines are drawn in the interior of the armour, a blunted chisel is used as a chasing tool to hammer into a soft block of lead. This is a much more traditional means of producing the lines, but the use of lead might not be preferred by all modern craftspeople. Standard pitch can be used instead.</p>
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<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058577199?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058577199?profile=original" width="442" class="align-center"/></a></p>
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<p>With the decoration finished, the finalizing construction can begin. This is a slow careful process which requires each piece being matched to one another. As the matching plates are placed, leather strips are measured and cut to line up with drilled holes in the plates. The leather strips permit the articulation of the various lames to match with the wearer’s movements.</p>
<p>It’s at these moments in a project that attention to detail is critical and this instance was no exception. While taking a break in the construction, a higher resolution image of the historical original came to my attention. The photograph showed a startling realization: I had made the shoulder lames wrong. The edges of the plates had been incorrectly rolled, permitting a thrust to the torso to travel up into the underarm. This is a moment that defines the difference between aesthetics and function. A decision had to be made.</p>
<p>To be continued…</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058580386?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058580386?profile=original" width="240" class="align-center" height="233"/></a></p>
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<p></p> The Kunst Schott von Hellingen Breastplate Part VIIItag:crafthaus.ning.com,2014-04-11:2104389:Topic:4657892014-04-11T21:39:55.581ZParker Brownhttp://crafthaus.ning.com/profile/ParkerBrown
<p>This is the critical stage of the project where all temptation to play Minecraft must be resisted so that I can practice some ACTUAL craft skills. Yes, it’s neat that you can reconstruct Notre Dame cathedral in a virtual world, but it can’t be submitted to the SNAG Exhibition in Print, can it?</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058563334?profile=original" target="_self"><img class="align-center" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058563334?profile=RESIZE_320x320" width="300"></img></a></p>
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<p>So, onwards and upwards.</p>
<p>With temptations managed,…</p>
<p>This is the critical stage of the project where all temptation to play Minecraft must be resisted so that I can practice some ACTUAL craft skills. Yes, it’s neat that you can reconstruct Notre Dame cathedral in a virtual world, but it can’t be submitted to the SNAG Exhibition in Print, can it?</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058563334?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="300" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058563334?profile=RESIZE_320x320" width="300" class="align-center"/></a></p>
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<p>So, onwards and upwards.</p>
<p>With temptations managed, the next step of the cuirass is to construct the tassets (see the image below for a refresher on the parts of a cuirass).</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058563254?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="350" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058563254?profile=RESIZE_480x480" width="350" class="align-left"/></a></p>
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<p>Essentially, the tassets follow the same methodology as the fauld. Using painters tape, each plate is patterned after the previous one until all of the overlapping pieces are accounted for. The tasset marks the end of the cuirass and should terminate just at the middle of the thigh. With a full suit of armour, the upper portion of the leg armour (cuisse) would lay just under the tassets, but for now the client only requested the cuirass.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058564421?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058564421?profile=original" width="500" class="align-center"/></a></p>
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<p>With the tassets rough formed, it’s now time to roll the upper edge of the breastplate. As one can imagine, this can be a daunting task especially considering the substantial size of this particular roll. Like most cuirasses, the roll serves multiple purposes. Rolls on armour serve to reinforce plates, giving added rigidity without increasing weight. In the case of the von Hellingen cuirass, the upper roll is </p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058563480?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="150" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058563480?profile=RESIZE_180x180" width="150" class="align-left"/></a></p>
<p>substantial because it not only give structural strength to the breastplate (where most hits would land in combat), but it also creates a barrier to protect the throat. Should a weapon hit the breastplate and slide, it will be diverted away from the throat and major arteries of the neck. Of course, on a full suit, the wearer would also have a gorget (neck armour), but the addition of a roll on the breastplate simply makes sense.</p>
<p>The mechanics of hammered roles is both simple and complex. For a greater understanding of how to execute a roll on armour, here is an excellent tutorial from fellow armourer, William Hunt:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.ageofarmour.com/education/armour_rolled_edges1.html">http://www.ageofarmour.com/education/armour_rolled_edges1.html</a></p>
<p><br/>Essentially, a roll requires a vast amount of control with the hammer to gently coax the edge of a piece of sheet over itself to form a rounded edge. There are a variety of rolls in armour from the substantial to the delicate. For this cuirass, the rolls are somewhat flattened and almost resemble folds rather than rolls.</p>
<p>Before rolling a plate’s edge, the piece needs to be sanded to a rough finish. The upper breastplate role requires the piece be trimmed and then the upper edge is hammered over flush then it’s hammered over to a 90° angle. The result is a very strong reinforced edge that greatly increases the structural stability of the breastplate.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058560675?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058560675?profile=original" width="500" class="align-center"/></a></p>
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<p>The remaining rolls are made to the interiors and bottom edges of the tassets, the bottom of the fauld and along the interior edges of the pectoral plates. The process involved many hours of work, but the result brings the cuirass to its final form ready for finished sanding, polishing and decoration.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058563291?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058563291?profile=original" width="500" class="align-center"/></a></p>
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<p>To be continued...</p> The Kunst Schott von Hellingen Breastplate Part VIItag:crafthaus.ning.com,2014-04-03:2104389:Topic:4648932014-04-03T21:40:19.910ZParker Brownhttp://crafthaus.ning.com/profile/ParkerBrown
<p>The plackart is a challenging piece of armour. Historically, plackarts formed a larger portion of a full cuirass. But with the German Transitional style (and later subsequent Maximillian style) the plackart’s role changed. Instead of being mounted in front of the breastplate like on the Milanese armour shown on the left</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058553221?profile=original" target="_self"><img class="align-center" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058553221?profile=original" width="500"></img></a></p>
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<p>from ca. 1445, the von Hellingen…</p>
<p>The plackart is a challenging piece of armour. Historically, plackarts formed a larger portion of a full cuirass. But with the German Transitional style (and later subsequent Maximillian style) the plackart’s role changed. Instead of being mounted in front of the breastplate like on the Milanese armour shown on the left</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058553221?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058553221?profile=original" width="500" class="align-center"/></a></p>
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<p>from ca. 1445, the von Hellingen cuirass used a smaller plackart mounted underneath the breastplate. The flair of the plackart would provide a smooth uninterrupted line from the bulge of the breastplate into the graceful flair of the fauld (area protecting the hips). So, as with the careful shape of the breastplate, the angle of flair given to the plackart is important in creating the overall profile of the armour.</p>
<p>Unlike the breastplate, which is a synclastic form, the plackart will be made using anticlastic techniques. The process involves hammering the form into a sinusoidal (snake-like) stake to move the metal upon two divergent axes resulting</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058560267?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="750" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058560267?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="605" class="align-center" height="155"/></a></p>
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<p>in a kind of ‘potato chip’ shape. Once the metal is moved into the rough approximation of where it needs to be, it’s refined along the middle axis to create a sharp crease. The top and bottom sections are then refined into divergent smooth curves. The result is a smooth even flared section that has extremely good strength from a relatively small amount of metal.</p>
<p>With the plackart formed, it’s time to move onto the faulds which protect the lower abdominal and hips. This will be composed of overlapping plates which, when finished, will have strips of leather underneath that allow for the whole section to accordion into itself. This articulation allows the wearer to have full range of motion in the waist and hip area.</p>
<p>Patterning the plates is relatively simple. I start with strips of 2” wide painter’s tape and I simply layer out each plate off of the previous strip. I then trim the tape into the form needed and transfer it to a piece of card stock. By only cutting out half of each plate and then ‘butterflying’ it onto the sheet of steel, I insure each plate is exactly symmetrical.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058563218?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058563218?profile=original" width="549" class="align-center"/></a></p>
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<p>Through this process, I work my way down to the base of the tassets which should come to just right at the groin. Each plate is first lightly dished and then refined over a shallow mushroom stake. As each plate is made, I clamp it onto the previously formed piece with vise grips and then heat the plate with my torch. The plate is then tapped into its final shape, insuring that each piece fits precisely with the curvature of the previous piece.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058560576?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058560576?profile=original" width="500" class="align-center"/></a></p>
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<p>With the conclusion of the rough-formed fauld, the project has hit the “point of no return”. Essentially, if there were any major changes needed for the project, they would have to be made now. At this point, it’s time to do a test-fitting with the client. The piece is packed up and I take it to the client. These are moments of truth where all of my hard work and attention to detail should pay off. It’s also a moment of excitement and (hopefully) validation for the client. All of the plates are temporarily bolted together, so there’s no articulation at this point, but the objective is to insure that the client’s body actually fits into and matches the shape of the armour.</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058561706?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058561706?profile=original" width="200" class="align-center"/></a></p>
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<p>After a moment’s hesitation, the rough armour is placed on the client…and is a near perfect fit. A few notes are made to trim the underarm by 1/8” and to note where the top of the breastplate needs to rest. Now I can take a bit of a break before bringing this armour to its hopefully happy conclusion!</p>
<p>To be continued….</p> The Kunst Schott von Hellingen Breastplate Part IIItag:crafthaus.ning.com,2014-02-16:2104389:Topic:4575422014-02-16T18:15:51.925ZParker Brownhttp://crafthaus.ning.com/profile/ParkerBrown
<p>Once a good illustration is made, I then need to match the image with the measurements. Breastplates of the period are actually made of five different parts: the breastplate, the shoulder lames, the plackard, the fauld and the tassets. Each of these components must build off of the breastplate. A lot of designers and amateur armourers tend to over size and over accentuate the breastplate because of its instinctive importance. This piece of metal protects most of the vital organs and,…</p>
<p>Once a good illustration is made, I then need to match the image with the measurements. Breastplates of the period are actually made of five different parts: the breastplate, the shoulder lames, the plackard, the fauld and the tassets. Each of these components must build off of the breastplate. A lot of designers and amateur armourers tend to over size and over accentuate the breastplate because of its instinctive importance. This piece of metal protects most of the vital organs and, with the exception of the head, is one of the most vulnerable parts of the human body.</p>
<p>This natural instinct to enlarge parts of the body we are most aware of result in some critical technical errors amongst those without a practical knowledge of how the body moves. I will address this phenomenon in another blog, but for now, we need to understand that the actual height of a period breastplate extends from about 3”-4” down from the base of the throat to just at the bellybutton. </p>
<p>On an average sized man, that's only about a foot, maximum. This doesn’t seem to be a very large measurement and the instinct to lengthen it must be resisted. Technical measurement and a trust in mathematical proportion need to take precedence over assumed aesthetics. These armour pieces were, after all, results of the Renaissance, a period when exacting proportion and scale were highly valued.</p>
<p><a width="300" href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058537645?profile=RESIZE_320x320" target="_self"><img width="241" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058537645?profile=RESIZE_320x320" width="241" class="align-left"/></a></p>
<p><img width="238" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058533279?profile=RESIZE_320x320" width="238" class="align-right"/></p>
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<p>With these measurements in mind, I draw out scale schematics of the armour. These working drawings are different from my illustration. They are intended to function as tools during my construction process. The objective is to give myself a guide as the armour develops so I don’t stray too far off of the measurements of the client. Just as the breastplate is the cornerstone piece upon which the rest of the pieces are built, so too is the case with the working drawing. By starting with the breastplate’s length, width and height, I can tell how far out and down the other pieces need to go. </p>
<p>In the working drawing shown here, you can see that the curvature of the breastplate comes out severely and then tapers down to the waist about where the client’s center of gravity is. This is where they would bend naturally and it forms a crucial part in distributing the weight of the armour. <a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058533509?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058533509?profile=original" width="327" class="align-center" height="245"/></a>The bulge of the breastplate does not mimic the form of the body but is rather a more architectural feature. If you look at the breastplate in cross-section, it forms an arch that transfers the force of a blow out and away from the body’s center. This means that a hit that would normally incapacitate gets distributed about the rest of the body. This principal is the same in Romanesque and Gothic cathedrals!</p>
<p>to be continued… </p> The Kunst Schott von Hellingen Breastplate Part IItag:crafthaus.ning.com,2014-02-16:2104389:Topic:4574012014-02-16T18:15:43.259ZParker Brownhttp://crafthaus.ning.com/profile/ParkerBrown
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<div class="xg_module"><div class="xg_module_body wpage"><div class="description" id="page-content"><div class="xg_user_generated"><p>The first step of any armour production process is research. As you have read in the previous post, I have a good historical knowledge of the original piece. Unfortunately, the only photo I had accessed was a grainy black and white image taken in 1960. …</p>
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<div class="xg_module"><div class="xg_module_body wpage"><div id="page-content" class="description"><div class="xg_user_generated"><p>The first step of any armour production process is research. As you have read in the previous post, I have a good historical knowledge of the original piece. Unfortunately, the only photo I had accessed was a grainy black and white image taken in 1960. <a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058539743?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058539743?profile=original" width="156" class="align-left"/></a>Further illustrations of the armour were found in a 1961 publication by the renowned Ewart Oakeschott entitled, “A Knight and His Armour”, but beyond that, the finer technical details had to be derived from my personal understanding of Italian, German and Maximilian style armour. </p>
<p>Measurements of my client were made in the spring of 2013. My client had decided to only have the breastplate and backplate made for now and the rest of the harness would be completed at a later time. Most clients tend to purchase a piece at a time, given the expensive nature of such an investment. Using strips of linen soaked in plaster, a body cast of the clients torso was taken to insure an extremely accurate means of measurement. Along with callipered measurements of key points on the body, these combined to create an accurate layout of the torso.<a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058531832?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058531832?profile=original" width="300" class="align-right"/></a></p>
<p>Fine historical armour was tailor fit to the wearer. Some of the tolerances on armour is within the millimeter range, so an intimate understanding of the body and its movements is crucial. Equally crucial is an understanding of how the body moves in combat of the period. This is one of the many reasons why I also practice the European martial arts of the period. A first hand understanding helps to develop new realizations of the interaction between the weapons and the armour. Design decisions made by period armourers often seem confusing or illogical until one has worn similar pieces and interacted with it as it would have been on the field.</p>
<p>Once accurate measurements have been obtained, I take this information back to my studio where finer design decisions are made. I generally start with a sketch of what I want to make. I personally believe that a three-dimensional artist needs to be able to convincingly render their ideas in two-dimensions in order to effectively communicate not only with their client, but within their own personal discussion of what the end object is supposed to look like. If I can’t capture a correct curvature or feature with a pencil, how can I expect to capture it with a hammer?</p>
<p>…to be continued</p>
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</div> The Kunst Schott von Hellingen Breastplate Part Itag:crafthaus.ning.com,2014-02-16:2104389:Topic:4573012014-02-16T18:15:34.225ZParker Brownhttp://crafthaus.ning.com/profile/ParkerBrown
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<div class="xg_module"><div class="xg_module_body wpage"><div class="description" id="page-content"><div class="xg_user_generated"><p>One of the most commonly posed questions I receive is, “how do you make a piece of armour?” This simple question is neither easily nor readily answered. Like…</p>
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<div class="xg_headline"><div class="tb"><h1><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058539577?profile=original" target="_self" style="font-size: 13px;"><img width="338" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058539577?profile=RESIZE_480x480" width="338" class="align-left"/></a></h1>
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<div class="xg_module"><div class="xg_module_body wpage"><div id="page-content" class="description"><div class="xg_user_generated"><p>One of the most commonly posed questions I receive is, “how do you make a piece of armour?” This simple question is neither easily nor readily answered. Like so many craft disciplines, armoursmithing is a technically driven process. Each step in the piece’s creation is dependant on another. However, as my blog audience, I will endeavor to walk you through a project currently underway for a client so a better understanding of that basic question can be given!</p>
<p>Like most of my pieces, the design begins with a historical original. This particular piece, a breastplate, dates from ca.1495. The armour was owned by a German, Kunst Schott von Hellingen, a Franconian knight who served as a mercenary in the multiple private wars ranging in Southern Germany at the end of the 15<span>th</span> century. The armour itself was likely made by one of the celebrated armourers of Nuremburg. Out of these workshops came not only some of the finest examples of the craft, but two simple inventions we still use today: the slotted head screw and the flat head screwdriver!</p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058536769?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058536769?profile=original" width="193" class="align-left"/></a><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058536694?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058536694?profile=original" width="300" class="align-right"/></a></p>
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<p>Schott von Hellingen’s harness (as full suits were referred to) was created at a unique time in armour evolution. Up to this point, German armour was characterized by the Gothic style, exemplified by finely fluted surfaces that reinforced the thin plates of steel comprising their harnesses. One full suit of German Gothic armour in the Wallace Collection weighs only 52 lbs. total. But the production of these suits required greater labor than the competing round surfaced armours from Italy. Schott von Hellingen’s armour was part of the answer: a new style referred today as German Transitional.<a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058537345?profile=original" target="_self"><img src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/1058537345?profile=original" width="267" class="align-right"/></a></p>
<p>The Kunst Schott von Hellingen armour is one of only two homogeneous suits existing today that belong to the Transitional German style. Its transitional nature stems from the changes in German armour during the turn of the 16<span>th</span>century from the fluted Gothic style to the eventual Maximillian style named after Holy Roman Emperor, Maximillian I. The result was a rounded style reinforced by fluting that resulted in an intimidating and impressive display of technical and artistic achievement.</p>
<p>As a transitional piece, the von Hellingen armour presents some technical challenges. While most armour has a variety of examples to draw from for inspiration, the von Hellingen is a rare example, so greater research than usual had to be conducted for the client if the armour was to be functional and historically accurate. While most metal artists must concern themselves with aesthetics and function, this is paramount for an armourer. Though some of my pieces end up in gallery openings, most receive their harshest critiques on the field at sword point.</p>
<p>….to be continued.</p>
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