xoves, 30 de setembro de 2021

Entrevista a Jim Linnell [COIRO]

Galician first, English below.

Labrado coa cara de Jim Linnell.
Hoxe temos a oportunidade coñecer algo máis sobre Jim Linnell, premio Al Stohlman Award do ano 2002

-Canto tempo levas traballando o coiro?
-Este ano cumpriranse 55 anos dende que comecei a traballar o coiro. Foi en 1966 cando meus pais me compraron un kit de ferramentas “Lucky 7” de Tandy Leather Company

-Como empezaches no coiro?
-Crieime nun rancho no leste de Montana. Estabamos a 50 millas da cidade máis próxima, así que unha viaxe á cidade era unha emocionante aventura que ocorría aproximadamente unha vez ao mes. Cando íamos á cidade, tiñamos que pasar pola guarnicinería Miles City Saddlery para mercar algo ou reparar algo. Os meus primeiros recordos do mundo do coiro naceron durante esas visitas. O cheiro e os sons dun taller de guarnicionería  a miúdo lévame a aqueles tempos. 
En 1966, recibín a miña primeira instrución formal en coiro traballando nunha clase de artes industriais no instituto. Foi unha breve introdución, pero me enganchou e cando conseguín as miñas propias ferramentas, seguín practicando. Encantoume e descubrín que era o suficientemente bo para que a xente realmente quixera que fixera cousas para eles. 
No instituto tiven a oportunidade de continuar en artes industriais e alí tiña un instrutor bastante coñecedor do labrado de coiro foi o que me axudou a perfeccionar as miñas técnicas e desafioume a seguir desenvolvendo as miñas habilidades.

Labrado realizado para unha
 portadas do catalogo de
 Tandy Leather Company
-Que ten o coiro que non teña outro material?
-Aínda que moitos pensan no coiro como un elemento co que se fabrican elementos funcionais como selas e outras correas, cintos, carteiras, fundas, calzado, bolsos e similares, penso no coiro como un medio artístico. Ten propiedades sorprendentes que outros medios non teñen. A arte que creamos nel é tridimensional. Pódese espeluxar, esculpir e moldear. Cando envellece, ten unha pátina gloriosa que da beleza por si mesma. Pódese pintar ou manchar para darlle unha vibración que cativa o ollo. Os únicos límites que coñece son os do artista que traballa con el. Non obstante, é perdurable. As obras dos mestres deste oficio son apreciadas en museos e coleccións de todo o mundo.

-Entre as diferentes técnicas que coñeces, cal é a túa favorita?
-Esta é unha pregunta difícil de responder, porque realmente teño paixón por traballar co coiro e teño unha gran satisfacción ao ver cada peza realizada. Primeiro namoreime do clásico labrado floral western que é  característico do oeste  de Estados Unidos. Executar un patrón floral limpo con profundidade e detalle pode ser tan desafiante como calquera técnica de labrado de coiro. Certamente namoreime do labrado figurativo, especialmente cando se combina con técnicas de estampado. Probablemente algúns dos traballos polos que eu son máis coñecido foron as portadas do catálogo que labrei para Tandy leather Company. Varios destes foron unha combinación de flores estilo western clásico e unha figura en relevo. Estas pezas retáronme a amosar a variedade do meu talento e combinalas nunha soa peza.

-Que peza tes ganas de facer e aínda non fixeches?
-Pasei o verán en Montana e, mentres estaba alí, visitei o museo C.M. Russell en Great Falls, Montana. Charlie Russell foi un artista vaqueiro que marcou a vida dos vaqueiros dunha época anterior. Aínda que hai moita inspiración entre as exposicións alí, emocionoume especialmente un par de acuarelas de Olaf Seltzer. Olaf era amigo de Charlie Russell e esas pinturas crearon unha imaxe na miña imaxinación que debo facer en coiro. Probablemente este sexa un obradoiro que vou dirixir nos próximos meses

-Que consello daríaslle a alguén que está a empezar no traballo do coiro?
-Cada ano ensino a centos de persoas nas clases e todos escoitan o mesmo de min e é que debes practicar, practicar, practicar. Cando me ven traballar, resúltame doado porque levo máis de 50 anos de práctica. Fago o posible por mostrar todas as técnicas e explicar cada paso o mellor que podo, pero ... ese coñecemento non se fai seu ata que o usan.
Un desafío adicional que alguén que comeza hoxe ten en Internet trae unha fonte infinita de instrucións que pode levar ó seu banco de traballo, aínda que isto poida parecer unha vantaxe, pode engadir confusión. Cada un desenvolve as súas propias preferencias en como fai as cousas. Cando un principiante trata de recibir unha pequena instrución de moitos instrutores diferentes e xuntalos para formar unha base firme para aprender o oficio, poden confundirse e frustrarse. A miña recomendación é atopar a alguén cuxo traballo admira e respecte e permanecer con ese instrutor ata que teña unha comprensión sólida.

Algúns dos Swivel Knife de Jim Linnell.
-Tes algunha ferramenta única ou especial?
-Levo tantos anos traballando no coiro, teño unha gran cantidade de ferramentas. A última vez que contei, teño máis de 130 coitelas xiratorias diferentes. Teño un xogo completo de ferramentas Craftool orixinais dos anos 50 e 60. En realidade teño miles de selos na miña colección e algúns deles son bastante raros. Entón, cando me preguntas se teño unha ferramenta especial ou única, non podo comezar a responder, porque sinto que todas son especiais e únicas. Un consello adicional que daría a un principiante neste momento é o seguinte: o que fai que un gran artesán do coiro non sexa o número de ferramentas que posúe nin o que gastou nelas, senón o ben que as sabe usar.
Calavera de Vaca modelada sobre fondo labrado

-Tes algún artesán do coiro que consideres inspirador?
-Hai moitos artesáns talentosos e brillantes no mundo de hoxe. Estou inspirado en gran parte do traballo que estou vendo feito. Creo que os que máis me inspiran son os que están a esforzarse moito para transmitir o seu coñecemento ás xeracións futuras. Coñecín a moitos dos grandes artesáns do coiro nas últimas décadas. Moitos deles agora descansan nas súas tumbas. O que me entristece é que algúns deles levaron ao sepulcro o seu gran coñecemento e talento. Os que me inspiran son os que escribiron libros, impartiron clases, produciron vídeos para que os que seguen poidan estar sobre os seus ombreiros e chegar aínda máis alto con este gran oficio. Este é o tipo de artesán do coiro que me emociona e me inspira.

-Que significa a ti para ser recoñecido co Al Stohlman Award?
-Lembro como mozo artesán do coiro cando se creou e entregou este premio. Imaxinei o que sería a honra incrible de recibir un recoñecemento de esta talla por facer o que me encanta facer. Nunca crin que puidese pertencer a ese grupo, pero aínda así pensei que se trataría do máis incríble que me podía imaxinar. 19 anos despois, no 2002, a miña máis salvaxe ambición converteuse en realidade. 
Portada do catalogo de TLC
realizada por Jim Linnel.
Como resultado de recibir ese premio, decateime de que agora tiña unha nova misión. A miña opinión é que os que reciben este premio convértense en emisarios de artesanía de coiro ao mundo. Para min, iso significaba que agora tiña que demostrar que o merecía. Sentinme obrigado a intentar estar á altura do que representaba ese premio. Al Stohlman converteuse no traballo da súa vida para compartir o seu coñecemento do oficio e achegalo a outros. Esta tamén se converteu tamén na miña misión. Non só debo transmitir o meu coñecemento e paixón por este oficio, senón que tamén debo inspirar aos que me encherían os zapatos cando remate a miña quenda nesta tarefa. Recibir o premio Al Stohlman pode parecer a consecución do obxectivo final como artesán de coiro. Pode parecer cruzar a liña de meta en primeiro lugar. Para min, situoume na liña de saída dunha viaxe na que estarei mentres o permita o  Señor, compartindo os agasallos e o talento cos que El me bendiciu, con cantos desexen entrar no mundo da artesanía do coiro.




Today we have the opportunity to learn more about Jim Linnell, 2002 Al Stohlman Award

-How long have you been working with leather?
-This year will it will be 55 years since I was first introduced to leather working. It was in 1966 that my parents bought me a Lucky 7 tool kit from Tandy Leather Company.
Troita modelada obre fondo labrado en coiro.

-How did you start in leathercraft?
-I grew up on a ranch in eastern Montana. We were 50 miles from the nearest town, so a trip to town was an exciting adventure that happened about once per month. When we would go to town, we would have to stop by the Miles City Saddlery to either buy something or get something repaired. My first memories of the world of leatherworking were born during those visits. The smell and the sounds of an active leather shop often carry me back to those days.
In 1966, I received my first formal instruction in leather working in an industrial arts class in junior high-school. It was a brief introduction, but it got me started and when I got my own tools, I kept on practicing. I loved it and discovered that I was good enough at it that people actually wanted me to make things for them.
In high school, I had the opportunity to continue in industrial arts and there, I had an instructor that was quite knowledgeable in leather carving and who helped me refine my techniques and challenged me to continue to develop my skills.

-What does the leather have that another material doesn’t?
-While many think of leather as a something from which you make functional items such as saddles and other tack, belts, wallets, scabbards, footwear, handbags and the like, I think of leather as an art medium. It has amazing properties that other mediums do not have. The art that we create on it is three dimensional. It can be caved, sculpted, and molded. When it ages, it has a glorious patina that is a beauty of its own. It can be painted or stained to give it a vibrance that captivates the eye. The only limits that it knows are those of the artist working with it. Yet, it is enduring. The works of the masters of this craft is cherished in museums and collections around the world.
Calavera de vaca modelada sobre
 fondo de coiro labrado e
decorado con conchos.


-Among the different techniques you know, which one is your favorite?
Labrado e tallado de Jim que tivemos
 exposto no Espazo EMAO
-This is a difficult question to answer, because I really do have a passion for working with leather and there is great satisfaction in seeing each piece accomplished. I first fell in love with the classic western floral carving that is a characteristic of the American West. Executing a clean floral pattern with depth and detail can be as challenging as any leather carving technique.
I have certainly fallen in love with figure carving, especially when it is combined with embossing techniques. Probably some of the work I am best known for were the catalog covers I carved for Tandy leather Company. Several of these were a combination of classic western floral and an embossed figure. These pieces challenged me to show the range of my talent and combine them in a single piece.

-Which work piece do you feel like doing and you haven’t done yet?
-I spent my summer in Montana, and while visiting there, I visited the C M Russell Museum in Great Falls, Montana. Charlie Russell was a cowboy artist that recorded cowboy life from an earlier era. While there is much inspiration among the exhibits there, I was especially moved by a couple of water colors by Olaf Seltzer. Olaf was a friend of Charlie Russell’s and those paintings have created an image in my imagination that I must do in leather. This will probably be a workshop that I will conduct within the next few months.

-What would be your piece of advice for anyone who is beginning?
-I teach hundreds of people in classes each year and they all hear the same thing from me and that is that you must practice, practice, practice. When they watch me work, I make it look easy because I have over 50 years of practice. I do my best to show every technique and explain every step the best that I can, but…… that knowledge does not become theirs until they use it.
One additional challenge that someone beginning today has that I did not is that the internet brings an unending amount of instruction to your workbench. While this may seem like an advantage, it can actually add confusion. Everyone develops their own preferences in how they do things. When a beginner tries to take a little instruction from many different instructors and the put that together to form a firm foundation for learning the craft, they can become confused and frustrated. My recommendation is to find someone whose work you admire and respect and stay with that instructor until you have a solid understanding.

-Have you got any ‘special’ or unique tool?
-Having been a leather worker for so many years, I have quite a collection of tools. The last time I counted, I have over 130 different swivel knives. I have a complete set of original Craftools from the1950’s & 60’s. I actually have thousands of stamps in my collection and some of those are quite rare. So, when you ask if I have a special or unique tool I cannot begin to answer, because I feel all of them are are special and unique.
One additional piece of advice I would give a beginner at this point is this: What makes a great leather craftsman is not how many tools you own or how much you have spent on them, but rather, it is how well you know how to use them.

-Do you have a leathercrafter that you consider inspiring?
-There a many talented and brilliant leathercrafters in the world today. I am inspired by much of the work that I am seeing done. I think the ones that inspire me the most are those who are trying their hardest to pass their knowledge forward to future generations. I have known many of the great leathercrafters over the last several decades. Too many of them now rest in their graves. What saddens me is that some of them took their great knowledge and talent to the grave with them. The ones that inspire me are those that wrote books, taught classes, produced videos so that those that follow can stand upon their shoulders and reach even higher with this great craft. This is the kind of leather craftsman that moves and inspires me.

-What does it mean to you to be recognized with the Al Stohlman Award?
-I remember as a young leathercrafter when this award was first created and given. I imagined what an incredible honor it would be to receive a recognition of this stature for doing what I love to do. I never believed that I belonged in such group, but I still thought it would be about the coolest thing I could imagine. 19 years later, in 2002, my wildest ambition became a reality.
As a result of receiving that award, I realized that I now had a new mission. It is my opinion that those that receive this award become emissaries of leathercraft to the world. For me, that meant that I now had to prove that I deserved it. I felt compelled to try to live up to what that award represented. Al Stohlman made it his life’s work to share his knowledge of the craft and introduce others to it. This has now become my mission as well. I must not only pass my knowledge and passion for this craft forward, but I must also inspire those who would fill my shoes when my turn at this task is done.
Receiving the Al Stohlman Award may sound like the attainment of the ultimate goal as a leathercrafter. It may seem like crossing the finish line in first place. For me, it placed me at the starting line of a journey that I will be on for as long as my Lord allows, sharing the gifts and talent with which He has blessed me, with as many as wish to enter the world of leathercraft.

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