Who is a craftsman?

By Ken Matesz

“Without craftsmanship, inspiration is a mere weed shaken in the wind.”    Johannes Brahms

There is much more to craftsmanship than just the skill with which one performs his craft.  Any profession demands the whole package of craftsmanship.

I will never forget when I attended a masonry heater workshop organized by a veteran, highly experienced mason.  About eight of us converged on a little house in Kentucky to construct a small, custom, one-of-a-kind masonry heater for an older woman.  Eight men cutting bricks, mixing mud, setting bricks, screwing holes, talking, laughing, making jokes, asking questions,and generally making a mess of this woman’s house is already quite enough violation of this woman’s tiny abode.  Though it was all for her benefit, it is nevertheless us strange men who were tracking dirt into her house for about a week.

People need to show great respect when intruding on and dirtying another person’s home.  

As we came to the final stages of the heater installation, one of the remaining tasks was to cap off the tiny raised hearth/bench in front of the firebox of this masonry heater.  But before we did so, the old veteran mason, the leader of the workshop, the example for all us aspiring young masonry heater builder wannabes, crumpled an aluminum beer can and threw it into the unused cavity of the bench.  Then he made some joke about how someone in the future would find that can – like a time capsule.

That was the last time I looked at this man as a teacher or mentor.  I saw him for what he was:  A common, beer-drinking mason.  I knew, even though he had decades of experience and well-trained hands, I wouldn’t be learning much from him anymore.

Show Respect

A craftsman cares not only about applying his skill, but also about showing why he should be permitted to dirty another person’s home.  Should I be permitted into your home so I can plant garbage permanently in it?  Or should I be permitted into your home because I obviously understand this is YOUR castle and I am just a guest?  I am your temporary contract laborer who is there for one purpose – to do a great job building something great for you.

A craftsman has respect and care not only for his current project, but also his tools, his workspace, and his clients.  An easy check he can make is to ask, “If some stranger walked by when I did this, would he think I did something nice or something stupid?”

A craftsman is always striving to make something better, and he likes doing that.  He likes doing it enough that he is always looking for and learning how to do it better.  He develops knowledge, wisdom, and experience by doing, practicing, studying, improving, building, and learning from his mistakes.  An old man may be experienced, but he may not be wise.  A craftsman my be half as old, but his actions speak of his wisdom.

When learning any craft, you can teach yourself to be a craftsman.  And that learning starts with the first brick you lay, the first board you cut, the first clay you mix.  Nay, it starts with your first intention to build something.

Let’s do it , and do it right.