T H E J O U R N A L O F T H E C O N T E M P O R A R Y L O N G R I F L E A S S O C I A T I O N VOLUME 3, NO. 1
JANUARY 2012
T H E J O U R N A L O F T H E C O N T E M P O R A R Y L O N G R I F L E A S S O C I A T I O N
CONTENTS
Volume 3, No. 1 • January 2012 EDITOR Mel Hankla
2. EDITOR’S NOTE
ASSOCIATE EDITORS Art DeCamp Frank House William Russell Young
4. from these hands: folk tradition of the Cla William Reynolds
ART DIRECTOR H. David Wright
20. The art and evolution of the american hunting pouch ~ A Contemporary Interpretation of the Historic Accoutrement T. C. Albert
PRODUCTION MANAGER William Scurlock COPY EDITOR Sharon Cunningham PHOTOGRAPHERS Ric Lambert Jan Riser
38. Distinct character ~ Iron-Mounted Longrifles from the 18th Century to Today Guy D. Montfort
ADMINISTRATION MANAGER Rachel Nolen
55. Book Reviews For Trade and Treaty: Firearms of the American Indians 1600–1920 Reviewed by Mark Sage
RESEARCH DEPARTMENT Henry Bishop James Blake Dan Brawner Kyle Carroll
56. SOURCES & RESOURCES Russell Young
AMERICAN TRADITION is the official publication of the Contemporary Longrifle Association and is published twice a year for the membership. Annual membership dues are $50.00. To join the CLA or for more information, contact: The Contemporary Longrifle Association, P.O. Box 2247, Staunton, VA 24402. Phone: 540 886-6189. Email: cla@longrifle.ws. Website: www.longrifle.com
Front Cover: Gracing our cover is an array of “folk art” by CLA members. Bill Reynolds created the relief carved spice box. Betsy Gaul produced the dainty and colorful tree full of life. The Kentucky rifle is Jesse Brennan’s contemporary rendition of the 1775 Christian Oerter rifle, which only recently surfaced from the descendants of the original owner. Greg Hudson tooled the hunting pouch covered with Pennsylvania Dutch motifs, and the accompanying engraved powder horn was made by Ranny Sprenger; all being watched by a whimsical pottery cat by Lisa Crews.
Copyright 2012 by the not-for-profit Contemporary Longrifle Association, all rights reserved. CONTACTING THE EDITOR: For editorial inquiries, contact Mel Hankla at <melhankla@amhiss.com>, phone 270566-3370. Mail written material to: Mel Hankla, PO Box 156, Jamestown, KY 42629 American Tradition
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Editor’s Note Connie Mock
American dagger by Glen Mock
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he articles featured in this issue of American Tradition strive to continue towards our goal of “Celebrating the Old with the New.” Education is an ongoing purpose of our association and you will find there is much to be shared by these devoted authors. Bill Reynolds, curator of the Campus Martius Museum in Marietta, Ohio, introduces us to several CLA Folk Artists in his article, “From These Hands: Folk Traditions of the CLA.” You will find a splendid array of these unique items adorning the cover of this issue. T. C. Albert, author of Recreating the 18th Century Hunting Pouch gives us an in-depth look into “The Art and Evolution of the American Hunting Pouch.” He presents theories about the construction and design of hunting pouches, showing many examples of both original and contemporary pieces. Guy Montfort, noted student of iron-mounted longrifles, delves into the style, character and philosophy of these particular guns. His commentary, “Distinct Character — Iron-Mounted Longrifles from the 18th Century to Today,” is a landmark article on these popular and intriguing firearms. This issue’s book review is by Mark Sage examining Ryan R. Gale’s book, For Trade and Treaty: Firearms of the American Indians 1600-1920. Rounding out this journal is Russ Young’s popular column “Sources & Resources.” One of the hallmarks of American Tradition is our high quality photography. From the first issue in January, 2010, our photographer Ric Lambert has provided excellent images of CLA members’ art and continues to grace our pages. When Ric has not been available we have procured the services of other fine photographers and with this issue are pleased to add CLA member Jan Riser to our staff as a contributing photographer. Jan’s work is familiar to us all showcasing the art of the Longrifle Culture on her and her husband Art’s superb blog: http://contemporarymakers.blogspot.com If you haven’t visited this outstanding site, I advise you to do so. However, procuring and/or having access to items when our photographers are available continues to be our greatest challenge. The CLA membership is scattered nationwide with a number of international members. Our annual meeting, held each August in Lexington, Kentucky, is the only venue where a majority of our members and their art is present. This meeting is our best opportunity to photograph contemporary art and artisans and I encourage all to bring their best for possible inclusion. It 2
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has often been said that producing this publication is like putting together a jigsaw puzzle, using only the pieces at hand. We do our best to feature different artists across the full spectrum of our membership, but we cannot publish photos of art to which we do not have access. I would like to encourage anyone with the inclination to write to please submit an article proposal. Many members are authorities in their fields and we kindly ask anyone willing to share his or her expertise to consider writing a future article. Several members have offered suggestions of topics they would like to see. Often these suggestions are to feature a particular rifle, usually an antique, or perhaps a story on a particular maker or artist. Discussion among the American Tradition staff about such articles resulted in the decision to continue our focus on articles pertaining to the art of the Longrifle Culture. This allows for the inclusion of many artists in each issue; more than fifty CLA artists are featured in this issue alone. We feel this much better serves our membership in a fair and unbiased manner. We are very proud to report that the works of more than 250 CLA artists have been presented thus far in only five issues of American Tradition, but not to exclude any artists, we offer the opportunity to all CLA members to sponsor any artisan. Once again, you will find seven artist sponsor pages in this issue. These sponsorships finance the addition of eight (8) pages of interesting commentary and exquisite photography in each issue. We sincerely thank each of our Sponsor Page supporters. If interested in being a sponsor please contact me at 270-566-3370 or melhankla@amhiss.com. Pages are limited and will be awarded on a first come, first served basis. It continues to be an honor to be your editor of American Tradition: The Journal of the Contemporary Longrifle Association and I am very proud to present, Volume 3, Issue Number 1.
Mel Hankla of
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From These Hands:
FOLK TRADITION OF THE CLA William Reynolds
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rt is the first form of human creativity and can be found on virtually every object made by human hands. From Roman sculpture to Andy Warhol’s soup cans, to highly- decorated longrifles and Pennsylvania German frakturs, one can easily be misdirected in the discovery of what a creative imagination can produce. A student undertaking the study of the history of art may find many avenues to follow.
ELIZABETH GAUL
RIC LAMBERT
In carrying on the folk art tradition as it relates to the longrifle culture what could be more iconic than Keith Collis’s copy of the Johannes Neff rifle. Its use of bone and a piece of a china plate for inlays and carving more stylistic of Pennsylvania-German than formal rococo designs sets it apart from all other rifles of the period. Ed Schweinfurth’s paint decorated hanging wall cupboard, through faux painting, transforms simple poplar boards into fine curly maple and displays decoration that any Pennsylvania-German family may have enjoyed. And just for nice is Elizabeth Gaul’s rendition of a distelfink or thistle finch symbolizing good luck and prosperity.
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ED SCHWEINFURTH A Am meerriicca an n T Trraaddiittiioonn
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AMANDA LIPPS COURTESY OF GARTH’S AUCTIONS, INC.
AMANDA LIPPS
Redware could be simple or fanciful as demonstrated by the original redware plate at the left and, at right, a contemporary plate by Amanda Lipps of Common Ground Pottery. The saying on Lipps’ plate: “I love what is fine-although not mine-and never will own it-yet I have the joy of it.”
The term “folk art” began to appear in common usage by collectors of Americana in the early 20th century. As these admirers of American made art forms began to recognize the naïve work done predominantly by rural craftsmen and to define it in relation to the more sophisticated work of the trained craftsmen of Philadelphia, New York, and Massachusetts, they felt a need to put the work into a classification of its own. Over a century ago the most popular areas of collecting of American made objects was focused on what we consider today as high-style furnishings. Tables, chairs, highboys with extensive rococo carvings, cabriole legs, and scroll work were dominating collectors – and antique dealers – tastes. The highly stylistic work of the larger cities was very much in demand by the DuPont, Rockefeller, and Ford families among others. But as these pioneer collectors and dealers moved their picking grounds to the more rural areas of Pennsylvania, Virginia, Maryland, New England and the Carolinas, they discovered a new beauty in the painted
furnishings, decorated pottery, fraktur art, and the simple, plainer works of rural artisans. By the 1950s the phrase “folk art” became the standard used to define works of art created mostly by rural, self-taught artisans. This new interest in folk art sparked recognition of the form by art historians, scholars, and collectors. In our area of interest, the study and recreation of the material objects of the longrifle culture, we can find countless examples from the past to educate and inspire us today. The work of John and Peter Derr, gunsmiths, blacksmiths, pewterers and decorative painters, could provide a student with a lifetime of study material. The book, The House of Derr, gives a wonderful sampling in its illustrations of everyday objects in use by a typical Pennsylvania German family. From decorated firearms, to fraktur, ironwork, bird carvings, and painted chests, these objects fall into what art historians classify as folk art, however, the definition of folk art has as many definitions as those trying to define it. Because its scope covers such a complex and broad range of objects
Some of the most significant folk art decoration as it relates to the longrifle culture can be found on original powder horns. With some letters being reversed in the name and other folksy embellishments, this horn is an excellent example of a frontier necessary elevated to artwork.
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Fraktur work, which was used to record life’s passages, could be colorful and elaborate. Top left: Original Ohio fraktur. Lower left: Donna Selfridge Spangler’s contemporary fraktur announcing the marriage of George and Martha Washington.
Below: An antique horn cup made for Kentucky militia leader, Green Clay, who, during the War of 1812, came to the assistance of General Hamilton at Fort Meigs. The patriotic motifs and map of the fort reflect the owner’s attachment to an important event in his life.
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DONNA S. SPANGLER and people, we will leave the discussion of what is folk art outside of this article. The art of embellishing a utilitarian object to add a personal touch or perhaps elevate it above the norm has been around from the beginning of mankind. From the earliest cave paintings to high style carving on a Philadelphia highboy, the human mind and its creative process always strives to create a thing of beauty from a simple object. This is especially true in the many elements of Am meerriicca an n T Trraaddiittiioonn A
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Bottom: Folk art decoration or form can manifest itself on almost every object imaginable. Mark Thomas’ inspiration for this knife came from an original he saw in a picture. Folding knives are one of the most common objects to survive from the 18th and 19th centuries and were carried by almost everyone. A knife like the one pictured would have surely stood out among the hundreds in daily use. Mark’s example shows his mastery of horn and metal and his complete understanding of form and function.
DONNA S. SPANGLER
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MARK THOMAS RIC LAMBERT
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the longrifle culture. From firearms, to powder horns, to hunting pouches, we can find many expressions of the creative process on their decoration and embellishment. In many cases this decoration falls under the folk art classification. But most importantly these embellishments are symbolic reminders of ones understanding of their culture and its influence on their lives. In the process of creating a work of art, artists need to have an understanding of the subject and the materials necessary to formulate a finished project. A potter just does not throw a lump of clay on a wheel and hope to be successful. The potter must have a total knowledge of the process involved in order to create a useful end product. This knowledge is not only affected by the standards and techniques already established by previous artisans, but also by the many influences surrounding the artist. An understanding of everyday life in the 18th and 19th centuries can help us to better grasp the feelings and emotions that went into creating a work of art. Human emotions were constantly changing as they were influenced by outside sources. Environment, community, family, politics, and especially religion played an important role in influencing artistic expression. The folk art that is more relevant to our interest has its beginnings in the same area, and was influenced by the same circumstances and environment as that which influenced and inspired the builders of the longrifle. Using four criteria borrowed from the Museum of American Folk Art as a guide, we can better understand how these early artists were influenced and in some way see what influences artists today.
frontier, is an example of an object created for utility. By decorating it with fanciful engraved designs and the addition of a name or rhyme, the artist has added his personality to his creation. He has transformed an ordinary object into a work of folk art. The same is true for many utilitarian objects. A clay pot is nothing more than a vessel to hold something, but by the addition of decoration it too becomes a work of art. Furniture with grain painting, rifle stock carvings of a lion or deer, fancy scrollwork on a meat fork or tasting spoon, are other examples of functionally crafted items elevated to works of art through the use of artistic creativity.
Community Community is simply a group of people drawn together sharing a common experience. Shared beliefs and religious experiences have a strong influence on the character of people within the community and the products they create. This experience is also influenced by the location. From a frontier stockade, to a rural village or a large city, artisans are affected by their surroundings. Excellent examples of community influence on art can be found in the work of the Moravian gunsmiths and potters, the horn makers of Philadelphia, Lancaster, and York, and the fraktur artists of Ephrata.
Individuality Individuality is the strongest form of self-expression. The appearance of an artist’s work, whether self-taught or trained through an apprenticeship, can only be reflected by the individual’s approach to the final product. Folk art that is representative of the longrifle culture exhibits expressive personal design both in the works of centuries
Utility
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A powder horn, a necessity of everyday life on the
Blanket chests found in numerous estate inventory lists of early America were used for generations before closets appeared in homes. Their wide surfaces offered a natural canvas for painted and carved decoration making a simple object a work of art.
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