Design | Idle Minutes

Category Archives: Design

ACEO Sportsman Art, “Double Gun”

05-Aug-06

I’ve always been fascinated by the Sportsman’s world. It’s a fancy world. You see, guys have an element of fancy in their preferences too. “Fancy” is not for ladies only.

Take the traditional Double Gun for instance. To a lady (most ladies anyway) a gun is a gun. But to a guy, a Double Gun is a thing of beauty…of art.

A world of knowledge, of which I have little, is required to design and build a fine Double Gun. The barrels must be matched and tuned, the fit of each piece is remarkably precise. The actions must be delicate yet stout. The woodwork and metal embellishment, is an art in itself. The checkering on the stocks and engraving on the side plates is tedious and precise work.

In the end, a functional creation of great beauty, balance, and design.

Parker Bros. made double guns for about 50 years. This is a somewhat rough representation of an actual Parker. It’s close enough to be recognizable though. Parkers are revered. They are fine examples of Gunsmithing. The company was a fine example of what a company should be to. They served their clients well. They provided what the client wanted. Parkers were usually custom ordered by discerning, wealthy people.

Double Guns are still made today of course. And today’s makers are revered as well. Parkers however, as well as other makers no longer in business, are sought after by collectors.

How big a deal can a Double Gun be to a collector?

How about paying from $50,000-$100,000 for a collectible Double Gun from Parker, Purdy, or any of the other renowned makers from the past? Yep, that’s what they go for at auction.

There is an element of romance in fancy items. Be they jewels, guns, swords, clothing…something about the way fancy things are made is stablizing. Perhaps because we have become wanderers in such a busy, overloaded existence, we seek the patience of those who make these items. Therein lies their value. To remind us of what we can do if we purposefully put our minds and lives to the processes of excellence.

Also filed in ACEO Art Cards, Sportsman Art | | Comments (2) »

Hardoy Chair

20-Jul-06

I used to work in the design industry in several different disciplines as a designer/engineer etc.

My stint with one company involved designing large office spaces filled with cubicles out the wa-zoo. Acres of cubicles.

One technique designers use to break up the maze involves the precise placement of just the right mix of ridiculously expensive furniture pieces. These pieces fall into the realm of “High Design”.

Don’s Helpful Hints: When you say “High Design”, it helps to recall Thurston Howell the Third from Gilligan’s Island. If you do that, you’ll be able to say it with the proper inflections in social settings. Jut out your chin, keep the teeth together, and emphasize the i’s.

Like art, furniture has its icons, both human and material. And like art, the appreciation of each icon is in the eye of the beholder. As they say, some like it hot, some like it cold.

The thing about high design is you have to be somewhat in tune to it to appreciate it. That’s a non-demeaning way of saying you have to be “in the know”. To those “in the know”, there is no better place to be in terms of maintaining one’s coolness.

To those NOT in the know…well they don’t really see any value in being “in the know” in the first place. So, they are just as content as those “in the know”.

But I digress…

High end designers tend to design for the sake of design first, then for the sake of comfort, safety and utility. The resulting creations are most interesting. Surprisingly, most are comfortable…if you remain in the intended position.

So, with all the interesting pieces in the high design realm of furniture, it seems like a good subject for Art Cards. Think I’ll see where it leads. If nothing else, I’ll learn more about the history of the pieces and thus be…”In The Know”.