Editors ’ Note: We stand by our
use o f “Heartland” as a geo-
graphical designation to refer
to the Midwest, as in this
Wikipedia entry:
“ TheMidwestern United
States ( also called the Midwest,
the Middle West, and The
Heartland) is one o f the four
geographic regions within the
United States o f America that
are officially recognized by the
United States Census Bureau.
The region consists o f twelve
states: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa,
Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota,
Missouri, Nebraska, North
Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota
and Wisconsin. ”
O f course, there is room for
interpretation, so we’ll accept
that map i f you’re still offering!
L adder-B acks vs.
LadderbackcabreddaLs
I w as surprised by Tom
Loeser’s characterization o f
Fine Woodworking
m agazine
as having a “ slightly anti-in-
tellectual slant” (“ Tom Loeser:
Taking Creative L icen se,”
Decem ber/January).
Fine
Woodworking
has published
the w orks o f G arry Knox
B ennett, W endy M aruyam a,
Craig N utt and many other
studio furniture trailblazers.
W e have also published the
work o f makers who are mas-
ters at w orking in established
idioms and who prefer 18th-
and 19th-century aesthetics.
I do agree w ith L oeser’s
observation that the world o f
w oodworking is pretty small.
T h at’s w hy w e take an open-
minded approach to our con-
tent. T h e universe o f w ood-
w orkers w ho are prim arily
interested in taking the craft
to new and experimental areas
is tiny. But w e appreciate their
idealism and provide online
forum s, at w w w .finew ood
w orking.com , w here lively
discussions on design are
ongoing.
Fine Woodworking
m agazine also supports the
Furniture Society, an organi-
zation that furthers the growth
o f new ideas.
Fine Woodworking's
content
mix reflects its readership,
and that audience leans more
toward useful vs. experimental
w ork. T h e tw o camps don’t
always see eye to eye. O ur
goal is to educate and inspire
furniture makers o f all stripes.
T h e beauty o f that approach
is that some w ill build ladder-
back chairs; others
LadderbackcabreddaLs.
A N A T O L E B U R K IN
Publisher
Fine Woodworking
N ew tow n, Connecticut
W h a t’ s a Photo F or?
A s an amateur photographer,
I loved the photo o f Jed M orfit
in the Decem ber/January
issue (“ R adar”).
But, the article it accompa-
nied w as an article about
M orfit, and my grasp o f him
would have been much en-
hanced i f I could have seen
him. T h e fundamental purpose
o f photographs in publications
is to show the readers w hat
the subject looks like. I don’t
mind—no, in fact, I enjoy—an
occasional “ art photograph.”
But the article really made
me want to see Jed!
JON C. LIEBM AN
Urbana, Illinois
C orrection
In “ W endell Castle: Shifting
Shapes & Breaking the R ules”
(October/N ovem ber 2008),
the last name o f G eorge
Beylerian w as misspelled.
W e regret the error.
W rite to us:
letters@ craftcouncil.org
Am erican C raft m agazine
72 Spring Street, 6th Floor
N ew York, N ew York 10012
STUDIO
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