We love this kind of thing. When we first announced the M&T Craft Research Grant back in 2020, we watched the mailbox with anticipation as applications began trickling in. We were blown away by the thoroughness and thoughtfulness of the applicants, and by the diversity of their areas of study. These applications are delightful to read through but extremely difficult to select from. It is hard to leave anyone out – but we only award two grants per year. So we have to make the choice. It is not easy. But our first recipient of 2023 stood out. Narelle Freeman, born in Australia but currently located in the Cumbrian countryside in the U.K., has been a luthier for over 20...
We’re excited to again open our Craft Research Grant for applications! If you haven’t heard, this program offers up to two grants per year to individuals or groups who are pursuing a craft, doing historic research, interviewing a master, or exploring museum collections. Besides offering up to $2,000 for each recipient, we also publish their work in a future issue of the magazine. So far, the Craft Research Grant has led to a fascinating look at vernacular violin making published in Issue Thirteen, and Issue Fourteen will include research on the disappearing craft of Taiwanese plane making. In the works are research on traditional Hawaiian ukulele makers, as well as a deep dive into the roots of Brazilian handcraft. I...
This year’s grant recipients are pursuing some fascinating research into traditional handcraft on both sides of the equator, and we’re excited to support their work! Without further ado, here they are. Aaron Keim is a woodworker, musician, teacher, and writer who has made a living through the ukulele for 20 years. His aim is to go back to learn from those who originally developed the instrument, Portuguese cabinetmakers and luthiers who emigrated from the island of Madeira to Hawaii in the late 19th century. He will travel to Hawaii to examine several collections of rare early instruments as well as visiting the shops of modern makers, with the goal of building an instrument utilizing period-correct tools and techniques. Thiago Silva...
We are excited to announce that we are opening up the M&T Craft Research Grant for 2022 applicants! Launched last year, this program is intended to provide opportunities for new voices and enthusiastic research in the realm of pre-industrial handcraft. Up to $3,000 will be awarded to each recipient, and can be used to cover travel expenses, research materials, or time taken away from a day job to focus on the area of interest. And this research will culminate in an article published in a future issue of M&T. Our goal is to enable those passionate about craft to dig in and share what they learn with others. We say it time and time again, but the rabbit trails are endless when...
The shortest day of the year seems designed to invite thoughtful reflection. Maybe it’s the long evening hours of darkness, or the cold outside that draws everyone closer to the blazing woodstove. Maybe it’s the dwindling pages remaining on the year's calendar, falling away like autumn leaves (there’s a mixed seasonal metaphor for you). Maybe it’s the cookies in the oven. Yeah, definitely, the cookies have something to do with it. Here at M&T, we have a lot to reflect on and be thankful for. Every passing year brings new and interesting work for us, new ideas, new acquaintances and friendships, and new (often old) tools to mess around with. This year has been especially unique, with the launch of...
After much agonizing over the pile of compelling applications we received, we have whittled it down to the two final grant recipients. Our first recipient is Agnes Chang, who will be partnering with woodworking instructor Adan Jhan in documenting the last professional handplane makers in Taiwan. Traditional Taiwanese handplanes (which resemble Japanese tools but are pushed rather than pulled, at standing benches) are an amalgamation of Chinese, Japanese, and Western influences, and the modifications and adaptations made to these styles offer clues about the overlapping evolution of each. Chang and Jhan will be touring Taiwan to learn from the remaining few traditional planemakers to study how the traditional methods of making and using these handplanes might offer wisdom for the...
Taking the time or finding the resources to be able to pursue craft knowledge can be hard when you’re a fixed-income retiree, a strapped grad student, or the breadwinner of a young and growing family. We’ve established the Mortise & Tenon Craft Research Grant to help folks from all walks of life to make these opportunities possible. If you’ve been intending to apply but haven’t yet sent the application out in the mail, we recommend you do so ASAP, because the deadline is only two weeks away: June 1st. Mike and I already have a stack to read through and we’ve heard from others hoping to apply. We’ll be selecting the first two grant recipients in the first...
If you’ve followed M&T for any amount of time, you know that we are zealous about pre-industrial craft. From furniture making to timber framing to chair-seat weaving to blacksmithing, we tend to get sucked into the rabbit hole of a given trade and try to learn all we can about it. The authors who write for the magazine are much the same, and we love to connect with new artisans or students of a discipline who excel in their particular field and are passionate about sharing their knowledge. Having fresh voices with unique viewpoints does wonders to breathe new life into the sometimes-dry realm of historical research. Over the years, we have met many such individuals who are fired up...
