Harry Partch on being seduced by carpentry...

Harry Partch once notably remarked that he was a "composer seduced into carpentry," refering to his need to invent and build the instruments he needed to realize his musical vision. It is rare in music to find composers of note who also built their instruments (although there is a good Elipsis Arts CD on the subject). In the twentieth century the advent of electronics increased the amount of people who were working this way.

The interesting thing is that in visual arts, it has been the opposite: until the mid-19th century, artists often had to make many of their own materials. Today I know very few people who grind their own paint. I have been thinking about this, because I have become the artist seduced into chemistry.

As I mentioned earlier, I am using a beeswax and synthetic resin medium, and I am finding it hard to resist the temptation to fiddle with the formula, working to increase this or that aspect of the stuff.

I was talking to a friend about what I was doing and he mentioned the problems that honeybees are having. Perhaps I had best go hoard some beeswax. Then again, if it turns out to be a temporary thing, I will then have to take up encaustic, which looks like a lot of trouble (although it looks like the sort of "a lot of trouble" that could be quite fun).