Fort Point Cabinetmakers, where I have been a Managing Partner for the last 9 years, is moving.

A view of our existing bench room

There are eight of us, all traveling on slightly different paths, but coalescing in a supportive group of furniture makers working together to keep the craft alive and vibrant.

Here is where we would normally get into the standard argument of “Art or Craft”, but not this time.  We are 8 craftspeople who want to sustain and expand the horizons of those who make, use and appreciate furniture in all its forms, as many of us have done for years.  We write.  We teach.  We create.  We conserve the legacy of others while pushing the boundaries of what is possible with current technology.  All of us know we have had an impact on those we have worked with and those we have created pieces for.

Our new space?  Only 200 feet from our current space,

A corner of our new machine room – not quite finished yet!

but in another building and on another floor.

We are the first new group in a grand experiment by Jamestown, our landlord and the owner of the entire Boston Design Center and the Innovation and Design Building.  We are forming a Makers Guild.  A space where high end makers and creators can work in close proximity, with the expectation that the diverse skills and expertise of each group can be used and expanded on by others in the Guild.  Metalsmiths working with people who stitch fabrics by hand.  People who use robotics to improve on the centuries old craft of creating mosaics.  All at the highest levels, and all collaborating with others to create new work that is different, and, yes, better, than that which has gone before.

Looking forward to it?  You bet we are!  But first we have to move all of our forty-year accumulation of lumber, finishes, machinery and patterns to our new space.  We are not necessarily looking forward to that part of the process.

If you are interested in the Makers’ Guild concept or think your shop might qualify for the Guild,  contact me and we can talk.  Now back to packing small things into tote boxes…

-Richard