40 – Defining “Craftsmanship”

The Mortise & Tenon Podcast

In this latest podcast episode, Joshua and Mike tackle a particularly thorny question head on: What is “craftsmanship,” exactly? While woodworkers of all kinds share a mutual appreciation for craftsmanship, surprisingly, there have been different ideas of what it even means. Is “craftsmanship” the same thing as “making” or is there something more to it? Can woodworking skill be reduced to the ability to repeat precise hand motions? Joshua and Mike argue that there’s more to it than that. Throughout the course of the discussion, they explain that the aim of technology is to displace skill for the sake of ease and precision. While technical developments provide real, tangible blessings in so many areas of life, Joshua and Mike contend that it is worth pondering how the “technologizing” of our craft can diminish its splendor.