CLA artists consistently demonstrate the
ability to marry museum-quality aesthetics with rugged practicality. Artist Jack Weeks and a cadre of talented
craftsmen have collaborated to produce a truly outstanding bag and horn set for
this year’s CLF fundraising auction.
The project is the brainchild of noted
CLA artisan Jack Weeks. The basic
concept, he explains, was to assemble “the equipment a market hunter in the
three rivers area would have carried to collect skins and to furnish meat for
the garrison and the village at Fort Pitt.”
Some of the items, Weeks says, the hunter could have made for himself;
other components in the set he could have traded for locally. “Our hunter,” explains the artist, “used a
smoothbore French fusil de chasse to kill big game with round
ball and used the same gun for turkeys and waterfowl.”
This fine set is well fitted for display
behind a glass case, but rugged enough for use in the field. All leather items – including hunting bag,
lock cover, flint wallet, bullet pouch, and shot pouch – are all hand crafted
from subtly aged vegetable-tanned cow hide.
The face of the 9” x12” hunting pouch is adorned with a pinwheel hex
design pierced on the flap; the body of the bag sports a 3” gusset and a
full-length partition. The leather is
finished with a homemade and historically appropriate coat of black bear oil
and beeswax. It carries an attached
knife sheath with a broken razor knife hafted with a deer leg bone; perfect for cutting patches on the
range or in the field. This exemplary
set also includes the basic necessities for the care of your firelock: extra
flints, a gun worm, an iron turn screw, a brass vent pick, and a wooden loading
block with a shell toggle.
“In the process of gathering and creating
items,” explains Weeks, “I had contributions from
three CLA artists.” Rick Lorenzen of Michigan donated an
antique powder horn; Shayna Matthews of Maryland contributed a hand-woven horn
strap; and Kenny Nichols of Alabama lent his skills with a hand-carved antler
tip powder measure.
For more information on the work of the
artists, contact:
Jack Weeks (jlwweeks@gmail.com)
Rick Lorenzen (ricklorenzen@hotmail.com)
Shayna Matthews (fiberwoodart@gmail.com)
Kenny Nichols (kennynichols59@yahoo.com)
Text by J Shepherd with photos by D Wright
