On Fri, 29 Feb 2008 12:40:11 -0500, N2EY wrote:

On Feb 29, 10:29 am, Michael Coslo wrote:

The concept of making a station conform to an aesthetic is not all tha
t
unusual. Our stations can be an expression of ourselves, and we can
either place the items on the desk and be done with it, or we can
embellish the room as we see fit. It is just another way to have some
fun.

Well said, Mike!

I'm a member of the function-determines-form school of thought on this.
That sounder is an excellent example of that school - its form is
exactly what it needs to be to do the job it was intended to do. Yet it
is aesthetically pleasing without any added ornamentation.

I've tried to follow that aesthetic in my amateur radio activities. My
homebrew rig (google my call for the website) is built almost entirely
out of reused parts. Rather than trying to hide this, I decided to
celebrate it in the design. The shack furniture, while made mostly from
new wood, is designed to be as strong and functional as possible while
being constructed using simple woodworking tools and keeping the cost a
s
low as possible. The result is a shack that is comfortable and
functional, yet inexpensive and flexible for changes. When I worked the
CW SS this year, I was able to incorporate a logging computer setup
(homebrew-from-reused-components computer, too) in a short time, becaus
e
of the flexibility of the shelving system.

You're just several pieces of brass and leather away from steampunkin'
it, Jim! The knobs and meters are already there. maybe brass up the
chassis (technical question: will the brass have an untoward effect on
inductors, ala diddle sticks?)

The speaker (red cone is a plus) can be covered with leather real
or faux. The shelves look a lot like the ones I made. Tubes glow, so they

are already there......


Part of the attraction to some of the products of certain eras is that
they were made of quality materials, and were intended to last a very
long time.

snip


Perhaps we hams are missing out on something by using words like
"shack", "shop", and "hobby". People who do art for its own sake,
without pecuniary interest, do not use those terms. Be it painting in
oil or watercolor, sculpture (in a variety of media), woodworking,
music, poetry, performing arts, etc., they use terms like "studio",
"gallery", "performance space", etc. There's a certain approach the
creative and performing artist have towards what they do, and I think w
e
could learn from it. We should not be apologetic for our activities any
more than an artist apologizes for his/hers. In amateur radio we can be
both creative (building equipment and stations) and performing
(operating our stations) artists!

Interesting insight Jim. When I built my telescopes, each one was
designed to be functional, yet beautiful. I was especially fond of the
12.5 inch reflector, which was done in art deco style. The form followed
the function, yet the aesthetic enhanced the form. On the urging of some
friends I entered it in the home made telescope contest, and it won.


There's also the factor of craftsmanship, which is evident in the
steampunk objects. Craftsmanship can't be bought or learned entirely
from a book; it's a matter of practice, too. Steampunk clearly has lots
of it!

They love to create. I'm hoping to bring some of that to amateur
radio. I also expect a certain amount of ridicule.


I think we hams may have been selling ourselves short in some ways. We
have aesthetics that IMHO are just as valid as any other. For example,
antennas are not "ugly" in that aesthetic - they are a beautiful
expression of form-following-function if done right. To me, a house doe
s
not become "home" unless there is a properly-designed-and- installed
amateur radio antenna present.

I think that many people have been told that antennas are ugly,
and that some industries are happy to promote that. Most antennas are not

ugly
--
-73 de Mike N3LI -