Registration for the M&T Pre-industrial Immersion Workshop is now open! The event is scheduled for June 8-12 here at our shop in Sedgwick, Maine. Our first week-long workshop last year was a great success, and we can’t wait to do it again! One of our students said, “The last week was filled with fantastic food, great discussions, and amazing people. I learned so much, but these new friends truly made the week what it was and are what I have come to cherish most.”
The application can be downloaded and printed here. Please note that it must be postmarked no later than March 20th.
We want these workshops to be unique, with an emphasis on educational value, skill growth, and a deeper understanding of the thought process of a pre-industrial woodworker. Because we don’t want cost to be a prohibitive factor, we do not charge for the week-long event. Instead, we’ve arranged this gathering as a work exchange – our six students give us two days of labor, and we give them three days of workshop instruction. Last year, the students set the granite foundation blocks for the CSF timber-framed blacksmith shop, as well as chopping joinery for a barn floor system and spreading compost in the garden. Working with your hands is a great way to begin to develop a pre-industrial mindset!
The focus of the workshop is not one project, but instead we will be working with each student to develop his or her individual project. In addition to bench time, we’ll be poring over antique furniture to look for tool marks, walking the forest to discuss the nature of wood and environment, and mining our extensive library here at the shop to learn more about the traditions and methods of woodworking. There will be lots of sawing boards and riving logs with the old, but well-tuned tools here in the shop. Students can camp in the woods nearby (we have a hot shower and outhouse on-site) and we’ll share breakfast and lunch together each day.
An information sheet is available here. You can contact us at info@mortiseandtenonmag.com with any questions.
If you’d like to learn more about the philosophy behind these workshops, you can read the blog posts from last year linked below.
A Pre-industrial Woodworking Immersion
We hope you’ll consider joining us.
– Mike