Lost Art Press

Last updated
Lost Art Press
LostArtPressLogo.png
Founded2007
FoundersChristopher Schwarz and John Hoffman
Country of origin United States
Headquarters location Covington, Kentucky, Kentucky
Key people
  • Megan Fitzpatrick (editor)
  • Christopher Schwarz (publisher)
Publication types Magazines, Books
Nonfiction topics Woodworking, Hand tools
Official website lostartpress.com

Lost Art Press is a publisher of books and videos for woodworkers and hand tool collectors and is based in Covington, Kentucky. It was established in 2007 by Christopher Schwarz and John Hoffman. [1]

Contents

The company has published books by modern woodworkers such as Nancy Hiller and George R. Walker as well as republishing older manuscripts by woodworkers such as André Jacob Roubo. [2] [3] They also produce books about woodworkers such as Henry O. Studley and Charles H. Hayward. All of their fifty-eight titles are printed in the United States; they do not sell their titles through mass-market retailers or websites. [4]

Values

The company publishes works that help the modern woodworker learn traditional hand-tool skills, attempting to restore the balance between hand and machine work by unearthing the so-called "lost arts" of hand skills and explaining how they can be integrated with the machinery in the modern shop to help produce furniture that is crisp, well-proportioned, stout and quickly made. Make Magazine has said they tap into the "growing unplugged workshop momentum." [5]

"The Anarchist's Tool Chest," written by Christopher Schwarz, describes a world where woodworking tools are at the center of an ethical life filled with creating furniture that will last for generations. Schwarz posits that people can build almost anything with a kit of fewer than 50 good tools; the book shows the reader how to select real working tools, and provides instruction for building a proper chest for a toolkit, following the ancient rules that have been forgotten or ignored. The "anarchism" mentioned in the title is individualist anarchism, specifically "aesthetic anarchism". [6]

Awards

Lost Art Press won Covington's Authenti-CITY award in 2022, being called "a mecca that puts Covington on the map for the hand-tool woodworking crowd." [7] The deluxe editions of their two books on Roubo were each named one of the "50 Books of the Year" by the Design Observer, in association with the AIGA and Designers & Books in 2013 and 2017. [8]

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smoothing plane</span> Woodworking tool used to make a workpiece smooth

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jointer plane</span> Large woodworking hand plane used for flattening and jointing workpieces

The jointer plane, also known as the try plane or trying plane, is a type of hand plane used in woodworking to straighten the edges of boards in the process known as jointing, and to flatten the faces of larger boards. Its long length is designed to 'ride over' the undulations of an uneven surface, skimming off the peaks, gradually creating a flatter surface. In thicknessing or preparing rough stock, the jointer plane is usually preceded by the fore plane or jack plane and followed by the smoothing plane.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Try square</span> Woodworking tool used for marking and checking 90° angles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack plane</span> Type of woodworking hand plane

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Tage Frid was a Danish-born woodworker, educator and author who influenced the development of the studio furniture movement in the United States. His design work was often in the Danish-modern style, best known for his three legged stool and his publications.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mitre box</span> Woodworking tool used to guide a saw

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">André Jacob Roubo</span>

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<i>The Woodwrights Shop</i> American TV series or program

The Woodwright's Shop is an American traditional woodworking show hosted by master carpenter Roy Underhill and airing on television network PBS. It is one of the longest running how-to shows on PBS, with thirty-five 13-episode seasons produced. Since its debut in 1979, the show has aired over 400 episodes. The first two seasons were broadcast only on public TV in North Carolina; the season numbering was restarted when the show went national in 1981. It is filmed at the UNC-TV studios in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holdfast (tool)</span> Woodworking tool for securing a work-piece to a bench

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Workbench (woodworking)</span>

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A cabinet is a case or cupboard with shelves and/or drawers for storing or displaying items. Some cabinets are stand alone while others are built in to a wall or are attached to it like a medicine cabinet. Cabinets are typically made of wood, coated steel, or synthetic materials. Commercial grade cabinets usually have a melamine-particleboard substrate and are covered in a high pressure decorative laminate, commonly referred to as Wilsonart or Formica.

Charles Harold Hayward was an English cabinet maker, editor of The Woodworker magazine, illustrator, and author of numerous books on woodworking. Hayward has been described as "the most important workshop writer and editor of the 20th century".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burnisher</span> Woodworking tool for sharpening a card scraper

A burnisher is a hand tool used in woodworking for creating a burr on a card scraper.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Square (tool)</span> Handtools for marking and checking 90° and 45° angles

A square is a tool used for marking and referencing a 90° angle, though mitre squares are used for 45° angles. Squares see common use in woodworking, metalworking, construction and technical drawing. Some squares incorporate a scale for measuring distances or for calculating angles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Miter square</span> Hand tool used for marking and checking angles

A miter square or mitre square is a hand tool used in woodworking and metalworking for marking and checking angles other than 90°. Most miter squares are for marking and checking 45° angles and its supplementary angle, 135°.

Aspen Golann is an American woodworker who produces furniture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christopher Schwarz</span> American woodworker, author, and publisher

Christopher Martin Schwarz is an American woodworker, author, and publisher. He established the Lost Art Press in 2007 in Covington, Kentucky.

References

  1. "About Us & How to Contact Us". lostartpress.com. Retrieved 11 December 2016.
  2. Nevins, Katharine (November 24, 2020). "Reading Choices for Holiday, Home". Monadnock Ledger. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  3. Breckenridge, Mary Beth (September 26, 2015). "Designer's Methods Point Back to Pyramids". Akron Beacon Journal. p. E1. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  4. "About Us, Contact Us & Returns". Lost Art Press. Retrieved 2023-05-11.
  5. McGlynn, Daniel (2016). "In Pursuit of Perfection". Make Magazine. Maker Media. Retrieved 2023-05-11.
  6. Press, Lost Art (2011-11-29). "Anarchy in the Schwarz Household". Lost Art Press. Retrieved 2023-05-11.
  7. "Authenti-CITY awards: Covington's Lost Art Press a mecca for those who study old-school woodworking". NKyTribune. 2017-06-26. Retrieved 2023-05-11.
  8. Newsom, Elizabeth (2019). "Library Acquisition Spotlight: Club Connections". Quarterly News Letter. San Francisco: Book Club of California. Retrieved 2023-05-11.