On Choosing Handmade: An Interview with Gary Rogowski
A master woodworker and furniture maker discusses whether technology helps or hinders us in the creation of beautiful things—and what it takes to become a master in his trade.
“Life is hard and fast. It's faster than ever… It just wears on us. And I know for me, getting into the shop is an important antidote.” - Gary Rogowski
Dear Friends,
We’re back from our holiday publishing hiatus, and excited about the new offerings we have in store for 2025. I’ll have more to say about that next week, but first, an update on our podcast series, “The Secrets of Mastery.”
Over the next few months, while we put together Season 2, we’ll be re-releasing the “Best of Season 1” for all subscribers, free or paid. Even if you listened to every episode last year, you’ll find that we’ve added new material, along with a new platform: You can now enjoy these episodes (with additional photography) on YouTube, as well as popular audio platforms like Apple and Spotify.
In this episode, master woodworker and furniture maker Gary Rogowski discusses whether technology helps or hinders us in the creation of beautiful things. An old friend of Craftsmanship and occasional writer for this magazine, as well as the author of several books, Gary always has interesting insights and entertaining anecdotes to share. So, without further ado, we hope you’ll enjoy this extended version of: “In the Age of Manufacturing, Why Choose Handmade?” — an interview with Gary Rogowski. As with all of our Secrets of Mastery episodes, it was hosted and produced by
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We always welcome your thoughts and suggestions, which you can offer in a comment, by tagging us in Substack Notes, or via email. Thank you for reading and sharing our stories, for supporting our work with a paid subscription if you can, and for being such a loyal part of the Craftsmanship community.
Happy New Year,
Todd Oppenheimer
Publisher & Editor-in-Chief, Craftsmanship Magazine
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Craftsmanship Magazine focuses on master artisans and innovators whose work informs our quest: to create a world built to last. In addition to our Substack offerings, you’ll find a rich archive of feature stories, podcasts, photo essays, and documentary shorts on our free website—along with community resources like our Artisans’ Directory, our guide to U.S.-based craft & folk schools, and much more.
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