ANST - Documentation

[Russell Husted]

I would like to see two kinds of A&S. I would like to see an artisans 
competition as well as the A&S as it currently is. I do many periodish 
crafts that I have no way to document, much less wish to waste massive 
amounts of time on doing documentation for my less important endevours. 
I do not believe that a winner or an artisans competition should receive 
a title posistion or anything like that, but that it should be 
availible. Fighters do not document their move moves, although the 
classic ones work best. Bards do not document their work, because much 
of it is new-I wrote my story in this style because....

But

Arts and Sciences is just that "AND" When I produce a scroll design, I 
must be able to document it. I must understand some of the whys and 
wherefor of my product. My first time at refair, I almost died from 
"Accent Poisoning" I was speaking with a woman who's accent was part 
souther london, part northern england with an irish tinge, but not quite 
scottish, and she clamed to be french. I realize most people do not 
recognize accent, but I do to some exstent and I found conversation with 
her almost painful. I do not hold anything against her and said nothing 
to her about it, but, If I were to turn in a scroll done the same way, 
this part is 4th century Irish and this part of the same page is 14th 
century french, I know a few laurels who would get almost sick on the 
spot-and rightly so.

I was recently in an A$S and of the 50 points possible, I lost 20% of my 
score do to lack of documentation. The problem was, I did not clearly 
state what I was entering. I enterred a scroll design, so I documetned 
the design. The judges thought I was entering a painted scroll, because 
I provided one as a sample on how that scroll might be painted. So I 
lost points and received comments like, more documentation needed. It 
was my fault. I did not state clearly what I was asking them to judge. I 
do not feel I could have given any more documentation than what I did, 
but, I could have explained clearly what I was submitting. I did get an 
interview after the entire competition was over with the judge. That was 
excellent. She gave me many good comments and ideas to work with. During 
the interview, I explained many of the things I did and why as well as 
pointed out the footnote that had been missed, and feel my score might 
have changed if the interview had happened as part of the competition. 
It was not for a couple of days till I figured out that they had judged 
the wrong thing, and that I did not state it clearly.

I am not discuraged from A$S and will enter them again, but there are 
many arts I enjoy doing that I will never enter into an A&S as long as 
documentation is needed. My chainmail is chainmail, my cardweaving is 
cardweaving, but I am just doing a craft. I do not want to documetn it, 
unless I am doing something real speacial. There are many masters of 
these and many other crafts, and I claim no level of mastery in them. I 
just love to do them, but will not enter them in anything, because there 
is no forum forum for just an artisan.

with respect
Mahee
a rapier fighter, a weaver, a calligrapher, an illuminator, a wood 
worker, a dancer, and working on being a brewer and storyteller, as well 
as a few that I can't think of right now.

<snip>
Your raise an issue that has been the subject of (occasionally heated) 
debate: documentation for A&S entries. There seems to be a trend towards 
putting more emphasis on documentation than on the work itself. (I'm not 
picking on you or this particular competition, you just reminded me of 
this ongoing debate, and some of the "fallout" it has brought.)

An artisan recently put it to me something like this: "I'm an artisan. I 
make things. I make them in a period style, using period methods as much 
as possible, and with as much craftsmanship as I can. But, lately, I 
can't even get a positive comment from the judges, let alone win a 
competition. All they want to talk about is my documentation (or lack 
thereof).
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
Just my two cents. What do *you* think?

In service,
Michael Silverhands
<end snip>

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