Rally 'round the flag (for Fred!)

I recently heard some sad news that one of my favorite metalsmiths, J. Fred Woell, suffered a stroke last week. I don't know much, but he did suffer some paralysis and the prognosis is good that he will make some recovery. He is engaged in acute physical rehabilitation to strengthen his left side and apparently working very hard and keeping his stellar wit intact.

I met Fred Woell many times when I attended, assisted, and later taught workshops at Haystack Mountain School of Craft, a magical place in Maine that I hope to return to sometime soon. Fred spent much of his pre-Haystack life either making or teaching in some of the country's leading metalsmithing programs. For those of you who do not know, Fred Woell is noted for being the first in the field to work with cast found objects and found objects in his metalwork for political and social commentary. In his younger years, he knew John Cage and was strongly influenced by both his music and philosophy. Fred chose to spend his early retirement years as the shop maintenance man at Haystack, which is when we crossed paths. Pretty cool. I can see the attraction, as I have serious fantasies about moving to that community every time I return.

I have two things in my possession that keep him in my mind often. One is a mirror that he made by cutting up an old American flag that was replaced at Haystack, and he used the bits to make buttons and small pocket mirrors. Mine is one of the stars, as you see here. The other is a piece of thin but ultra-resilient rubber that he sold by the foot at Haystack--this was some 3M product that is really great to use if you don't want to scratch up a piece of metal in the vise or when you hammer it. It's been a decade since I bought my slice, and it's been a very helpful thing on many a project.

There's currently a campaign out to have 1000 postcards arrive at his hospital room. If you would like to participate, here's the address:
J. Fred Woell
Room 877 Eastern Maine Medical Center
489 State Street
Bangor, ME 04401