. ..

___ ........

SEL!{llUt
N.fGIONAt

ARCHIVH

PROPOSAL
FOR

THE FOUNDING OF A SCHOOL OF CREATIVE WOODWORK
AND
AFFILIATION WITH SELKIRK COLLEGE

Presented by:
John Barton

CONTENTS

1.

The Need

1

2.

The Proposal

3

a)
b)
c)
d)

3.

School Facilities
a)
b)

c)

4.

The Building
Equipment
Location

Expenditures and Revenues
a)
b)
c)

5.

Concept and Objectives
Conduct of Courses
Preparation
Affiliation with Selkirk College

Capital Outlay
Operating Costs
Revenues

Potential Development

Appendices
Appendix A
Appendix B
Appendix C

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3
5
5

7
7
7
8

9
9
9

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1.

THE NEED

It is paradoxical that Canada, with its abundance of magnificent timber
and its pioneer history of dependence upon forest materials, should now
have so little to show in terms of woodcraft skills or appreciation for
the careful and refined use of its timbers.
This sad reflection on our way of life since the end of pioneer days is
manifest in a number of ways.

For instance, the only evidence of

sensitivity towards the use of wood is confined primarily to Canadian
ethnic groups such as the west coast Indians and the French Canadian
carvers.

Immigrants may bring their skills with them but, so often,

their talents are abandoned in the commercial race for volume and profit.
At best, their skills die with them.

Admittedly some architects make

excellent use of our timber, but many have little profitable opportunity
to do so and are generally frustrated.

The commercial approach to the use

of wood is·largely fake and callous, and is manifest in low common
denominator design and plastic imitation.

As a result the public's

natural sense of beauty and honesty towards the craft is distorted and
bad taste is the keynote.

Added to this general apathy is the average Canadian handyman's attitude.
He appears to believe he is quite competent in the use of wood and all
he needs to know is how to cut up appropriate lengths of material and
knock them together.
his results;

This "easy to make a box" attitude shows through

his cabinets and his houses are so often little better than

crude boxes with some adornment and little imagination.

Probably the

ready abundance of cheap materials and the lack of knowledgeable instruction
have led to his apparent carelessness.
The low level of Canadian woodcraft.-•skills and an unfortunate lack of
training facilities have gone hand in hand; one the product of the other.
A search for training facilities reveals littl e beyond the scope of basic
tradeschools and proper apprenticeships are virtually nonexistent nor

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could really be considered practical.

The hobbyist also has little

professional guidance to which he may turn i f he wishes to develop his
skills fully, and the "Popular Mechanics" approach seems to be his destiny.

All the above portrays only the dismal side of the picture.
two important factors indicate brighter prospects.

Happily

First, the past

twenty years or so has shown a noticeable awakening of the public's
aesthetic values;

a greater leaning towards fine arts and a search for

expression through increased participation in various crafts and hobbies.
In the experience of the writer, when he first started creative woodworking
twenty seven years ago there was very little demand for his work yet, during
the last ten years, he has been increasingly inundated by demand.

How many

people are looking vainly for adequate craftsmen to construct a fine home

or a special piece of furniture?

This first factor indicates that the

Canadian has latent talents and sensitive taste to match those evident in
older cultures.

A most important manifestation of this is the change in

the active search for Canadian identity.

Secondly, international shortages

and much tighter economics are triggering Canadian instincts towards better
use of available resources;

the search for more economic transportation

and the return to home gardening or the use of allotment plots to reduce
living expenses illustrates this trend.

In terms of woodcraft, more people

are trying to make their own structures or fixtures albeit, too often,
rather crudely and wastefully.

First hand evidence of the improved attitude

towards woodcraft is the increasing number of young people who seek out the
writer for guidance to improve their woodworking skills.

The older cultures have achieved their own identities.

Those with available

forests, or with trade access to lumber, reflect their unique cultures in
their woodproducts and living s tyles.

Switzerland, Scandinavia

are a few examples.

Much can be done.

Why not Canada?

and Britain

Why not now?

The following proposal is pres ented in anst'ler.

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2.

THE PROPOSAL
a)

Concept and Objectives
It is proposed to establish in the Kootenays a school of creative
woodworking

open to all.

Entrants may be young or old, male or

female, skilled or unskilled, rich or poor.
qualifications will be;

The key enrolment

the desire to improve ability and the integrity

to carry through.

The school will act as a catalyst for the improvement of vocational and
avocational woodworking and will carefully nurture the individual
talents and expressions of each person attending.

Further, it will be

policy to observe and interpret the needs and spirit of Canadian culture
and instill this spirit into the works produced by students.

In order to achieve these objectives, the .student will be encouraged
to exercise all of his resourcefulness, bringing into play the use
of his imagination, his design, his skill, his available materials and
his equipment.
directed.

He will be guided and aided by the instructor, but not

In other words, the student will not merely be making bett e r

articles from wood;

he will be creat_ing them.

His products will be

a reflection of himself and the environment.

Mobility will be an important aspect of the concept.

When neede d, the

school will be taken to the place where the student can reach it without
disruption to his normal livelihood.

Mobility will make a more difficult

operation but will ensure maximum e ff e ctive use of the facility.

b)

Conduct of Courses
A variety of courses will be available to cover the varying nee ds of
diffe rent stude nts.

Because of the small size of the school it will

be neces sary to offer only one course at a time until demand and growth
permit othen-.rise.

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It is not proposed to adhere rigidly to hard and fast syllabi because too
much rigidity would oppose the school's policy to provide maximum scope
for individual creativity.

Rather, flexibility will be the keynote.

This will not mean the loss of standards or control;

within given time

limits the student will be required to gain specific essential knowledge
and skill according to the requirements of the given course.

Upon

completion of a course a graduate will be able to approach an employer

or an individual project with specific abilities.

The selection of courses will be quite varied in nature, though creativity
will be common to all.

For instance a student may well use the school

as a means of carrying out his own projects, or i t may well be that a
group of students could be concentrated on the completion of a project
for their own community.

It is foreseeable that training may include

self-reliance courses for the unemployed, providing them with skills to
make them more employable or better able to make their own way.

Where

employment is not available, such training could at least enable them
to repair or improve their own homes and furniture at minimal cost.
Which ever way, their training would lift their self esteem.

As currently conceived, the range of courses to be offered would fall
into the following main categories:
i)

Building Construction - amateur
- professional

ii)

Building Improvement and Renovation

iii)

Community Project Construction

iv)

Cabinetry and Furniture - basic
- advanced

v)

Woodcarving and Sculpture - basic
- advanced

vi)

Self Reliance

The scope of each course and the standards required are presented

in Appendix

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c)

Preparation
It is expected that the school will be capable of functioning at the
start of the 1975/76 fiscal year, though unknown factors will affect the
degree of completion.

A Canada Council Explorations Grant has been

requested to assist construction, while there is reason for optimism
the results will not be known until December.

Winter conditions during

construction will also have bearing upon progress.

Provided the grant is approved in full or pro_v ided alternate means can
be found, it is expected that the two main components of the shop will
be complete.

Outfitting of individual benches and hand tools will still

be required, also it may not be possible to provide the collapsible interspacing section between the two main units.

The latter deficiencies may

be overcome if budgetary approval will permit prior completion in advance
of payment.

Grant approval would permit some training before spring.

Should no assistance be available, it is still expected that a viable unit
will be in operation

for April.

The mobile structure is already compl e te

less the fold-out section, and the static section is expected to be
framed-in and enclosed by the new year.

At that time present resources

will be expended and the dictates of a livelihood would force the writer
to devote more time to other activities.

d)

Affiliation with Selkirk College
'l'here are many reasons for this school to seek affiliation with Selkirk.
Those reasons are both p ersonal and practical.

The proposer, despite

a wide instructional background in subjects related to civil and military
aviation, has not dealt with public educational authorities and needs
experienced guidance in the formulation and operation of this school.
From the outset Selkirk h as shown a most open minded and encouragin g
attitude towards the concept of such a school and the atmosphere and
ameniti e s of S e lkirk appear most conducive for the purpose.

Selkirk

presents a pool of minds and res our ces from which to draw information

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on administration, business accounting, art inspiration, technical
know-how in allied fields and, generally, Selkirk conveys a quite
unique sense of cooperation and goodwill.
would also convey a known standard.

Affiliation with Selkirk

Alone it would be a mammoth task

to administer, research, provide and teach this new concept.
all matters would receive attention but none properly.

Probably

Pooling of

resources would re-J.uc'e· overall administration, increasJ efficiency and
allow the writer to focus on the prime objective of nurturing Canadian
woodcraft talent.

Apart from the physical amenities and favourable nature of the College,
the location has considerable influence on the chosen course of action.
Selkirk is situated at a mellowing distance from the temporary slick
and fashionable trends of the larger cities with their tendencies to
become more and more alike.
Here there are still traces of origin which may provide the essential
clues to detect the mainstream of Canadian identity.

Further, the

beautiful environment can only help to unfetter human creative instincts.

Thus there are many advantages for the school, should affiliation take
place.

Conversely, it would seem that Selkirk College would have much

to gain.

A mobile Selkirk School of Creative Woodworking would be an

ambassador at large carrying the name into a wider span of communiti e s.
Any good potential of the school would reflect on the College itself,
and the concept of searching out and developing Canadian skill and
character in a hitherto lost art must be close to the philosophy of
the Coll e ge.

Finally, here is a virtually ready made school on offer,

prepared to pioneer in a visionary field.

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3.

SCHOOL FACILITIES
a)

The Building
The school will be housed in a single mobile classroom/workshop
similar to portable classroom units used throughout the Province.
Certain modifications of the structure will be incorporated to permit
expansion and provide increased mobility.

(See diagram, Appendix

The full classroom will consist of two main components, only one of
which will be fully mobile.

The mobile section is already constructed

and, when complete, will include a full length side extension which
can be folded into the existing unit to permit ready transportation.
This unit is ten feet wide, the maximum width for towing without a pilot
car, and encloses a length of thirty-six feet.

The second main section

will be portable but will remain static on a temporary foundation until such
time when the whole school may be moved~

. This section will be linked to

the other section with the folding span intervening.

The above configurations will house 12 students at home base or 6
students at a mobile site.

Further expansion of the home base configura-

tion is practical but may necessitate the use of intervening posts to
support the snow load on such a wide span.

b)

Equipment
Simple, basic equipment will be provided.

The choice of power tools

and hand tools is predicated by the allied needs of economy and of the
school's objectives.

Economy limits the availability of power tools

to those already owned by the school.

These are generally lightweight

for both portability of the school and flexibility of shop lay-out for
different uses.

School objectives will also stress the use of hand

tools and the resourceful use of all e quipment and materials.

The age

of abundant ivaste is over.

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Other equipment will include individual benches, a chalk board and
stacking chairs.

Space and safety considerations will not permit the use

of spray finishing equipment, only low-volatile hand finish equipment
is considered.
available.

c)

Dust disposal systems must wait for finance to become

Appendix _ _ _ details proposed equipment.

Location
The site for construction and assembly is on the writer's property,
two miles east of South Slocan and half a mile from the main highway.
A s_i te and access have been bulldozed.

Existing buildings have been

repaired to make storage available for materials and overflow e quipme nt.

Whether or not this site can become permanent is a delicate matter;
land freezes and zoning laws at present inhibit the construction of
permanent buildings, and mobile buildings are subject to debate.

This

matter can b es t be determined when the writer is more familiar with
the local authorities.

In finality, the choice of a permanent site

should be left open for mutual d e termination with Selkirk College.

Local public authorities will be approached for temporary sites when the
school is to become mobile.

It is anticipated that school grounds,

parks, or construction sites may be us e d according to the nature of
the undertaking.

It is possible that auxiliary power equipment may

be needed on some sites.

Workshop noise int e rference will be minimized

by the heavy insular construction of the building.

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4.

EXPENDITURES AND REVENUES
a)

Capital Outlay
Overall round figures are presented in the text, specific details
are listed in Appendix

The existing mobile unit, installed on site, has cost close to

$8,000 cash outlay.

The value of existing power tools and materials

housed is currently estimated at just over $5,000.

Estimated cash

outlay for the completion of the static unit .and collapsible sections
is another $8,000.

The value of remaining equipment should amount to

a further $5,000.

In all, the completed cost of the whole structure is estimated at

$16,000 and the contents at $10,000, for a total of $26,000.

These

figures do not include subsistance and personal expenditures directly
related to the project which are hoped to be offse~ at least in part,
by the Canada Council Grant.

Neither do they take into account the

interest on a $10,000 loan invested in the project.

Also, certain

costs in the adaptation of the property have not yet been taken into
account.

(Goodwill or the value of the concept and capability??)

Thus the total capital value of the school is expected to be

b)

9perating Costs
Operating costs will include the normal overheads for the operation of
the building and equipment, plus towing charges when needed.

At the

commence ment of operation there ,vill be one instructor who will require
an equitable salary plus mobility expenses.

Administrative costs 1,1.ill

include some clerical and accountancy services, provision of reference
material and certain consumable shop materials.

See Appendix

for details.

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c)

Revenues
It is hoped to achieve status that will provide access to student
grants and bursaries.

But, whatever the means, student fees will

be the main source of revenue.

Other possible resources may include

the publication of texts and manuals, available to students and the
public at large .and, also, the sale of articles to newspaper syndicates.
Further possibilities are lectures to the public and the sale of
school products.