What a fantastic interpretation of a classic east Tennessee longrifle! I always enjoyed seeing Jim's work when he came to Friendship - if I recall correctly his booth was almost right across from Steve Davis's in the second row. (Boy - on any given day you could see some really fine contemporary southern longrifles in that aisle!. I wish they would return.)
Jim also made a number of wide-butted early style longrifles and his metal work was always superb.
Just a great example of all the best things that appeal to us about these guns - elegant, slender crisp architecture; really fine iron work, and a nice finish. It really captures the looks of the best of the mountain rifles and reflects the hand of someone with a strong sense of the spirit of the times and places these early Appalachian guns were made.
When Robert Weil started collecting images for the Contemporary Makers book in 1973 the challenge to record contemporary gun work was daunting. Gathering material was difficult and time consuming. Few makers thought that there was any value in published documentation of their work. Electronic publishing has changed all that. Having a website or having one's work available to view on the internet is becoming a necessity. In spite of all the potential to finally have a true overview of what's being produced by the artists of today, a great deal of work still remains covered up and basically unknown. Our role is to make an effort to document some portion of what’s going on today. To comment on the established makers and to uncover the unknown. We welcome your comments and suggestions and look to you our readers to make us aware of the talented makers out there. Art and Jan Riser Robert Weil and The Makers
What a fantastic interpretation of a classic east Tennessee longrifle! I always enjoyed seeing Jim's work when he came to Friendship - if I recall correctly his booth was almost right across from Steve Davis's in the second row. (Boy - on any given day you could see some really fine contemporary southern longrifles in that aisle!. I wish they would return.)
ReplyDeleteJim also made a number of wide-butted early style longrifles and his metal work was always superb.
Just a great example of all the best things that appeal to us about these guns - elegant, slender crisp architecture; really fine iron work, and a nice finish. It really captures the looks of the best of the mountain rifles and reflects the hand of someone with a strong sense of the spirit of the times and places these early Appalachian guns were made.
GM