The IAP Collection

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jeff

jeff

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Introducing The IAP Collection

After 8 months of planning, many personal messages and a lot of collaborative work, a new "tool" has been added to the IAP workshop: The start of a permanent collection of pens has been established from the IAP Membership explicitly for the purpose of public display.

This Collection will be taken/sent for display at State/Local Chapter gatherings as well as regional gatherings (MAPG; MPG, etc.). It is also feasible that The Collection could be sent to other countries for periodic display. With the establishment of The Collection, IAP members can now see in person what they have admired on their computer screen. While we may never meet some of our IAP forum acquaintances, it is now possible to physically admire their work. And, future IAP members will have the opportunity to see works of those who came before them.

The Collection also begins the process of physically archiving, documenting and preserving the evolution of pen turning in recent years, and more specifically that of the membership of IAP.

What this collection is NOT: A "Best of The Best," A "Hall of Fame" or an IAP rendition of the Pen Maker's Guild. The IAP Collection is intended to be inclusive of newer turners who are displaying interesting works; accomplished turners who are simply "Masters;" folks who have made long-standing contributions to IAP as blank makers, vendors or teachers; and turners who are refining techniques and skills that will further our craft.

As of today, The IAP Collection consists of 23 pens (Core Collection) that have been donated to "jump-start" the formation of a much larger assemblage.

Please visit the Collection Overview and the Photo Summary. From those two pages you can click to the photo album entries for each pen and read about each in detail.

The collection as it stands today is just the beginning. It will evolve through the contributions of the forum membership with respect to it's actual holdings, and future structure and purpose. What is presented today should be considered an initial foundation to build upon. Three methods have been proposed for expansion of the Collection.

  1. Chapter Contributions: When a Local Chapter displays the collection, they become eligible to donate a pen to the collection. The donation may occur any time within one year of the date the collection was displayed at the chapter meeting. This allows the local chapter to "leave their mark" on the collection.
  2. Birthday Bash Contests: Up to two "members choice" contests per year may be selected to be "IAP Collection Contests". The first place winner from these contests will have the option to have their pen added to the IAP Collection and receive an additional cash prize as compensation. Because the winners are chosen by popular vote, this allows the general membership to have a direct effect in the makeup of the collection.
  3. Solicitation: The Caretaker may recommend that a particular pen be sought, or a specific member be commissioned to provide a pen for the collection. The frequency at which this method is employed will depend on the available funding, the current size of the collection, and other factors. If IAP funds are used to acquire a pen in this way, the Caretaker will involve the general membership, the Collection advisors, or the IAP management team in the decision. This allows the addition of pens from members who do not compete in contests or participate in a local chapter, and will be useful in filling gaps in the Collection.
The Collection will be managed by a curator. Because of his generosity and dedication in the establishment of the collection, [profile]Mark James[/profile] has agreed to continue shepherding the collection through its early period of growth. Please join me in thanking Mark for bringing this wonderful new part of the IAP to reality.
 
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Yes, I also had the privilege to selected to participate in this IAP collection, that represents a lot more than a mere "collection" of pens. Mark James turn an idea into a reality and thanks to his financial support, many pens have already been presented to the collection, and many more will add to it, throughout the years.

Another thing that comes from such amazing ideas, is the amount of backstage work from those in charge of dealing with it. I'm yet to know of other IAP members involvement, appart from Mark and Jeff to which I send my special thanks for all their troubles.

I should also note that, the founder of IAP Mr. Jeff Brown, should be extremely thrilled with such recognition and future participations on IAP, after all, this is a private space created by someone that has repeatedly demonstrated great understanding and support to its members so, thank you Jeff, your "baby" is growing sound and strong...!:)

As for Mark James, this man has a heart of gold and he is making a very valuable number of contributions to IAP and all its members, a very special thank you to you, my good friend...!:)

Cheers
George
 
Hi Folks... A Few Housekeeping Chores!!!​

1. For all the current Artists represented in the IAP Collection, check that all
the information noted for your pen is accurate! If any changes need to be
made, please send me a PM.
2. Those that have not sent in info - Fear not! Send me anything you wish to
be documented and we will get it added... Jeff is bored to tears and
needs more work :eek::eek::eek:!
3. The 2 BASH "IAP Collection Eligible Contests" are not determined yet: TBA
4. The Advisory Committee is not yet determined - TBA.
5. Display/mailing protocols are being drafted - TBA. (Suggestions are
welcome, this is not my forte!).
6. PLEASE NOTE: This is now an IAP Activity! How the Collection evolves is
largely up to the membership. On occasion the Advisory Committee/
Caretaker will need to make decisions on behalf of and in the interest of
IAP, but this should be minimal, and as often as possible with input from
the membership.
7. Finally... To keep MY ROLE as transparent as possible... When the Initial
Collection Holdings were presented to IAP (Jeff), I also submitted a "Letter
of Resignation" from any further involvement with the IAP Collection. I
truly wish this to be an IAP Activity, which includes appointing whomever
may best serve the interests of IAP through their skills and experience. I
have no doubt that there are others in the membership that are better
suited for this task than I. However... Jeff has ignored this letter thus
far! So.. as a happy IAP Minion, I will assist with The IAP Collection as
long as necessary (and able), then will happily pass on the baton!


OK, My formatting stinks... Fire me!
 
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Mark gets all the credit for taking the collection from concept to where we are today. I did a little techno tinkering behind the scenes, but this would be nowhere without his effort. There have been a few turning points in the history of the IAP that have significantly influenced our community, and this is certainly a big one!
 
I wish to thank both Jeff and Mark for the foresight to bring this to reality !!!! A picture may always be worth a thousand words, but seeing something first hand or holding it in your hand leaves you speachless. I am very proud to be a part of this show and tell adventure and hope it pleases all who see it. Jim S
 
Just wanted to highlight something that is mentioned elsewhere:



"An additional 10-15 pens are "In Design" and will be added to the Collection as they are received."​
 
To all the folks with kind words.. THANK YOU!

But, with your permission, I would like to redirect the nature of this thread to... THE PENS!!!

When all is said and done, my role in this project will be minimal, The guys and gals who produced these works are the ones who deserve the accolades - they have graciously made contributions to this Initial Collection through their artistry, creativity and dedication to IAP and our craft... That is our inspiration.

(Nobody goes to an art museum to be inspired by the curator/caretakers; they go to be inspired by THE ART :tongue:).

So, comments, critique, suggestions - Let's figure out how to use, nurture and take care of our "New Tool!"

Minion
 
Once the collection is well established it would be interesting if arrangements could be made with the major pen shows to have the collection (or a subset) displayed during the shows (under glass with no handling of course). That would expose IAP to collectors as well as makers.

Maybe there would be a subset of the collection that were "travelling show" pens if the entire collection were too much for a show.

Ed
 
First Great Question

Got a PM with this question: How does a pen get included in The Collection?

Going forward, there will be three ways, but first some acknowledgements...

First, the initial contacts (51 members of IAP) was woefully short of all those that deserved to be represented. For that I will simply say that I had to make some choices. If 20 IAP members were asked to come up with a list of 50 pens/turners for a Collection of this nature, I suspect every list would differ in some respects. So, I tried to be inclusive of several criteria, and hoped it would a respectable START..

Second, there are pens "In Design" from the initial contacts that will be automatically added as they are received.

Finally, I anticipate that in 5-10 years this Collection will be a robust 75-100 pens strong, and many of those that are currently deserving will be represented.

So, How does...

The collection as it stands today is just the beginning. It will evolve through the contributions of the forum membership with respect to it's actual holdings, and future structure and purpose. What is presented today should be considered an initial foundation to build upon. Three methods have been proposed for expansion of the Collection.

  1. Chapter Contributions: When a Local Chapter displays the collection, they become eligible to donate a pen to the collection. The donation may occur any time within one year of the date the collection was displayed at the chapter meeting. This allows the local chapter to "leave their mark" on the collection.
  2. Birthday Bash Contests: Up to two "members choice" contests per year may be selected to be "IAP Collection Contests". The first place winner from these contests will have the option to have their pen added to the IAP Collection and receive an additional cash prize as compensation. Because the winners are chosen by popular vote, this allows the general membership to have a direct effect in the makeup of the collection.
  3. Solicitation: The Caretaker may recommend that a particular pen be sought, or a specific member be commissioned to provide a pen for the collection. The frequency at which this method is employed will depend on the available funding, the current size of the collection, and other factors. If IAP funds are used to acquire a pen in this way, the Caretaker will involve the general membership, the Collection advisors, or the IAP management team in the decision. This allows the addition of pens from members who do not compete in contests or participate in a local chapter, and will be useful in filling gaps in the Collection.

Several points:

1. The BASH winners have the OPTION... It is NOT a requirement that ANY winner has to give up an award winning pen for an additional prize as a condition for entering any contest. It is simply their option. This may result in some BASH's contributing no pens, and other years several.

2. Anyone can publicly, or privately make suggestions to me, and the future Advisors. I will keep a list of ALL suggestions and a discussion will occur! This started as a one-person activity just to get it started, but now it is a membership/advisory committee responsibility!

3. This is a "Work-In-Progress." If through membership suggestions the structure of the Collection evolves, that is perfectly fine.

4. It did not make the transition in the final editing, but MPG and MAPG should also be included as a "gathering" that can donate pens. We can iron out those specifics.

Thanks for the question Steve!
 
I expect that, eventually.....you will need a pretty good sized box to haul the donations to the chapter meetings :biggrin: Still.....it's a great idea :wink:
 
dalecamino said:
I expect that, eventually.....you will need a pretty good sized box to haul the donations to the chapter meetings :biggrin: Still.....it's a great idea :wink:
Click to expand...


I am thinking that some sort of pen carrier will be used to protect the pens. When I had talked to Mark about this idea I think I remember him saying that his goal was to have groups of pens that can make rounds and not one big stash. So amount of pens should not be a problem. The problem or thought I have is that this is a group of pens that are elite in some way or other. Something that makes them stand out above the others. No need to see your basic run of the mill acrylic blanks or wood blanks. This would keep the pen count down somewhat. It should be interesting.
 
Fear not about the transport of the pens. Mark really has thought of everything when it comes to this project, including how they will be transported or shipped. A customized Pelican Case, designed to Mark's specs has been purchased just for that purpose.
 
jttheclockman said:
dalecamino said:
I expect that, eventually.....you will need a pretty good sized box to haul the donations to the chapter meetings :biggrin: Still.....it's a great idea :wink:
Click to expand...


I am thinking that some sort of pen carrier will be used to protect the pens. When I had talked to Mark about this idea I think I remember him saying that his goal was to have groups of pens that can make rounds and not one big stash. So amount of pens should not be a problem. The problem or thought I have is that this is a group of pens that are elite in some way or other. Something that makes them stand out above the others. No need to see your basic run of the mill acrylic blanks or wood blanks. This would keep the pen count down somewhat. It should be interesting.
Click to expand...

Dale: For displays where I can drive to (or whomever takes over), I would be able to take as many pens as the Chapter/MAPG/MPG requests (all or a few). When (eventually) it is shipped (i.e., Texas chapters; Wisconsin; England) I only suspect a portion will go.

John: You are exactly correct. Today there are 23 pens. When the collection grows to 50-75, there is no need to send the "Excellent Pens" that are within reach of the skill level of many IAP members. It would make more sense to send the "Elite" pens that very obviously stand out from the rest.

While the entire Collection is not a "Best of the Best," A subset of it most certainly will be!

But, another option is that if a chapter is planning a demo on... Kitless pens, they can request the 12-18 Kitless pens; or the 18-20 segmented pens, etc...

There eventually will be many options for the chapters to request.
 
mbroberg said:
Fear not about the transport of the pens. A customized Pelican Case has been purchased just for that purpose.
Click to expand...

(Yea, I snipped :tongue:).

Thanks for the lead-in Mike!

Here's what we've got (Jeff paid)!


View in Gallery


View in Gallery


View in Gallery


View in Gallery


And as you can see... I have a slight problem... Phil Morris (firewhatfire) put no thought what-so-ever into shipping!!! Way to go Phil :wink:



View in Gallery


View in Gallery


View in Gallery


View in Gallery


View in Gallery
 
Beyond the fact that these are all amazing works of art, what I really like are the explanations that talk about the process and materials that were used for each of these. Makes me appreciate them even more.
 
It needs to be acknowledged that of the initial pens thus far (23), some of the contributors donated their pen(s) entirely, or with minimal compensation (postage, etc...). As was promised, a small donation in their name would be made to IAP instead of compensation.

On behalf of the membership, I would like to thank those contributors for their generosity to IAP.
 
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znachman said:
Thank you Mark james :beauty::beauty:

It is a matter of love :RockOn::RockOn:

WHEN HARRY MET SALLY
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Hi Itzak:

I organize.. you guys/gals do the tough artsy stuff!!

Be well, stay safe. I worry about folks like you and Yaroslaw. It is a very different world here; we need to be more minful of how others live (in MY opinion only).

Best Regards, Mark
 
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