boatmaking apprenticeships, where can they be found?

[artist,carolina]

i'm 19, and the ocean, i say it's waves and wind as in night, and in day, i would like to be near- but i wish, foremost, to work under a master boatmaker where i can learn the art of boatmaking, that is with wood and sails, traditional in respects of harnessing the power of the wind. i have deferred from maryland institute college of arts for a year, and have just finished two years as a visual artist at north carolina school of the arts- as much as creating appeals to me, i believe that i would like to spend at least two years around other people in a collaborative effort, with the intentions of functionality. i want to do things healthier than nights on end without sleeping, fluorescence accompanied with turpenoid- i want to be near that which i find beautiful, and breathe again. i seek to be an apprentice because i yearn for a deeper relationship than the sorts i've thus far involved myself with in the visual arts- professors that i respect, but haven't had the chance to warm up to. i wonder of what consequence my presence has so far been to their position? so i assume that living near or with the teacher, and being one of a few students would foster something more appreciable. i look for a new place, as well, adventure and a trade that i can master to get those elegant curves parting that beneath and sailed through. i thought that a foreign country would be ideal (brazil, especially), for the event of learning a new language, relearning how to communicate with people, and resettling myself- i have also come to the conclusion that experiences, the lifestyle that i pursue is more beneficial to the act of creation than assignments and the academic life of a student, degree or no degree. to be challenged, and surprised in adventurous endeavors- such are the things i'm after. i don't mind paying money for whatever it takes to do these things- i only wish to involve myself in something legitimate, well-established in some manner of speaking. what is their, between the infinite corners of this globe, that have something for an artist in the ways of boats?

[Landlubber]

WOW, well you are the artist at least in writing, indeed trying to be articulate, but failed but many grammatical and spelling mistakes, so I wonder if this letter is for real.

I will give you the benefit of the doubt that you are truely interested in wooden boatbuilding. i would suggest firstly, that the call of the sea is often imaginary, it may appear to be very romantic etc etc, but it is in real life, pretty hard mostly. Go to a local sailing club and learn to sail, if you get bitten bu the bug, good luck to you as it will hold you till the day that you die. A good sailer makes a far better boatbuilder than one that does not sail, as he understands the requirements of the wind and the weather, enjoy.

The boatbuilding side is simply hard work my friend, it is very rewarding to the person that loves their job, but if you have any thoughts that you will be financially rewarded for all your effort, forget it. 99% of the wooden boatyards do so because they love to play with their boats, and building in wood is truely creative indeed. I am a qualified shipwright (boatbuilder), and am very proud of my work, unfortunately it only pays an average wage , far less than the hours actually worked. It is not a problem if you love to see the result more than the wages, you state that you are prepared to pay for the experience, not so my friend, you will get a good job because you want to do the work, there is no need to go to a woodenboat school to do that. Plenty of places that would love to have an apprentice that is willing and eager to work, no problems.
As I said, learn to sail first, then see if you still want to play.

All the best to you.

[artist,carolina]

thankyou for your reply-

i do want to work very hard for such a trade; i think that this was one of the reasons that boat making came to mind ("it cannot be so easy to mold wood and involve oneself in such a long process"; "and since when has sailing been easy, how could the creation of the vehicle that sails be any easier", so were my thoughts). i do not care for the benefits of wages, i only mentioned money because i was considering travel and board; getting to these places and staying there. but my situation is that i havent' been able to locate any of the "places that would love to have an apprentice that is willing and eager to work" outside the united states that are not english-speaking. there are locations in maine, rhode island, parts of new england and florida, and of course california, within the continental us- but i suppose that even the internet is limited, as all of my findings have come from it but also remain within it. yes, i think you have an excellent point concerning the education of sailing- but again, do you know of any places (where english is second) that have opportunities for apprentices in the craft of traditional boatmaking.

thankyou

[Landlubber]

"there are locations in maine, rhode island, parts of new england and florida, and of course california"......have you written to these yet.

Go to Seek.com in Australia, it is an employment place. There are often boatbuilders there needing help. Get a copy of the Australian Yellow Pages, look under boatbuilders and write to them, do the same in New Zealand, they are very good builders too.

I currently have no apprentices as i am working in China, making a brand new 43 foot yacht for the American market. very fancy day sailer.

[the1much]

there are LOTS of places in Maine thats just what your looking for,,and most of them a premier yacht builders,,,that LOVE cheap labor , hehe ;)
if maine sounds close,,,,let me know and i can get ya some contact numbers and names ;)

[the1much]

and lubber,,,,what ta hell is he askin fer?,,,i could only understand every 14th or 19th word,,hehe ;)

[Landlubber]

the1much,

Bit of a flower I think mate, let him go, he seems harmless!

[artist,carolina]

not a flower, a writer. "harmless" is not a good word for one good with words- or hands. but thank you, mates, for all of the advice.

[Landlubber]

No offence intended mate, we are not used to artistic people in our environment, you may see us in that light, we certainly do not.

Working with our hands and minds to create is still just work, it is ofgten seen by outsiders as being "very creative", not so when you are actually doing it. The "more genteel" amoungst us see our work through rose coulored glasses, we see it through glasses that are always covered in dust!

[artist,carolina]

understood, understood- i am not offended, just curious about all of this. i wonder if it is possible to not look at the sea as rosy, without having worked as you've done. its the last untamed wilderness, for the most part. and how it stretches! and one more question- do you know of any places in brazil, comparable to those you've mentioned in your home country?

[Landlubber]

No sorry, I have not been there (Yet). Do not get me wrong my friend, I love the sea, and have great respect for the sea, and sometimes it is simply beautiful, but in actual fact, it is generally just full of water, choppy, and difficult to see in. I have had nights at sea when the sky and the sea are one, it is inspirational certainly, but then the swell comes back, the wind comes up, and we are back to where we were, reality.

Not too many days or nights are beautiful at sea. Understand that, and you will probably enjoy it. Believing it is a beautiful place to be is a bit like dreaming of the grass onthe other side of the fence, it is always greener, but it still needs mowing!

[artist,carolina]

ha ha! and you show me as young (the true landlubber).

[waikikin]

Artist,Carolina, one place that I can think of as you've described is in Milne Bay province in Papua New Guinea or at least 15 years ago was, there on the shores of Milne bay to the east of Alotau local shipwrights would build carvel planked vessels under the shade of the palm trees, its like paradise but wether you would be allowed to work there in place of a local would be another matter as jobs are protected, of coarse. if your bringing the money for the work- that would be viewed more favourably I'd imagine & you could then voyage the vessel & have fun, paradise is often best viewed from the cool of the shade with a cold South Pacific Lager at hand as working in heat is hard, similar opperations where available in the Solomon Islands as well but I've never been there & you'd wanna research the situations well esp if you like a drink as many missions/villages are "dry". All the best with it from Jeff.

[the1much]

to go with Jeffs post,,,,im from maine,,,been down here in texas 6 years,,,has been in the 100's F for a month,,,,,a week after i got here i almost died( not really but it felt like it),,got heat stroke on my first day at a new job,,,,working in heat that ya not used to takes almost all ya strength,,,a 2 hour day of standing in the heat is like a 12 hour day back home.,,, and like he said,,,,REALLY look into the place your going,,,,even though the "country" might be "friendly" dont mean the "locals" are,,,,,i was gonna go to the american virgin islands after their big hurricane to help set electric poles,,,,then they gave me a paper with all the "donts",,,like,,,,walk down the street alone,,,have money on ya,,,go out after dark,,,,they seemed to HATE americans,,,i mean,, white people,,,,,so be VERY careful on ya choice.
this is thous warning,,,< see that,,i used 1 of them "writers" words,,hehe ;)

[Landlubber]

waikikin,

You were in PNG in the "good old days". Have you been there recently....I have, not pretty mate. The shops have armed guards at every door, they have to actually let you in and out, you go out for dinner with someone watching the door in case the "rascals" decide to come in and rob the place, my next door neighbour was shot dead in her car upon arriving to work (Lae), they took her purse, two shots through the drivers window, 0800 in the morning in front of people, they do not care.

I cannot recommend it any more unfortunately.......

[artist,carolina]

the1much,
i was wondering if you could send any contact information my way (maine). or if there are any other places that you know of. thanks.

[the1much]

i'll get my #'s together and post em fer ya,,,,,im a "slow" hippie on "meds" so give me a few hours hehe ;)
that and im here between "coats",,hehe ;)

[the1much]

what kind of work do you wanna do?,,glass,,,varnish,,paint,,fairing,,wood,,carpentry,,,man theres alot to building these things,,hehe ;)

[the1much]

the very first 1 i would try is hinckleys,,,they do alot of work with beginners,,,in varnish dept. ask for "Levi",,in paint ask for "Larry Reed",,phone= hinckleys (207) 667-6029 ,,,thats their "Trenton" facility,,they have 2 more on the "island" ,,,next i would try "morris yachts",,they bought Able marine,,,they make some REALLY nice sailing and power boats,,"apogee55,,downeaster style powers,,,,everything "custom" except the hull,,,(here comes my bragging,,hehe,,,theres a hardtop salon,,custom from start to finish,,,by,,,,ME,,hehe,,,the dude was 6'7" ,,and wanted a hardtop that he could "fit" in,,told me,,,"do whatever it takes",,,,man able marine bragged bout that,,hehe) ,,well,,,hows this for my second shot at being a writer?,,,,now that theres "suspense",,, Morris Yachts Inc
207-244-5509
207-244-5511
207-244-3402
1 of them is actually their "trenton ""able marine" facility,,sorry dont know which 1,,,,there for doing glass and fairing,,,ask for " Maaaaaaaack <like a sheeps baaahh) Card" ,,,he was my mentor,,an old drunk that would give ya ANYTHING he had that ya needed,,,and will TEACH you the RIGHT way,,,(heres this 3' sanding block,,anda 18",,and a 4",,,now go over there and make that transom on that 55' look like the first 6" i did for ya),,that was my first fairing lesson,,hehe. ;)
ellis 207-244-9221 < really nice boats,,ask for,,,,David-----something,,,sorry forgot(maybe never knew) his last name,,they do alot of work with kids in high school trying the "work&school" thing,,do you need more?,,,,,,,i could give ya "personal" numbers,,but that would cost you alot alot of money,,and probably cost me friends,,hehe ;)

[waikikin]

Landlubber, sorry to hear things arn't to nice in PNG now, I think it may have been the "good old days", & I was only there for a couple of weeks maybe 18 years ago, there was trouble back then & the cop cars were landcruisers "in a cage" kinda thing & would park well back till the business was over, but only ever saw uncool stuff in Port Morsby, in madang & goroka & Alotau that we went to the people were real nice- same in Morsby except for a few, I beleive back then the rascals were more organised crime than the hoodlum style that exists now, I'd love to visit again but have the full suburban scene going on, the closest I've been lately is the PNG rosewood I just framed a little deckhouse in. The China work you've mentioned in posts sounds interesting. All the best from Jeff.

[RHP]

I cannot comment for fear of being verbally abused for two weeks over 10 pages.

But you know what I am thinking...... :-)

[artist,carolina]

gary1 sent me a link to the "wooden boat centre of tasmania, boatbuilding school"- it sounds right, good. something along this line is what i am thinking.
julian

[the1much]

wooden boats?,,,i thought you wanted to be a boat builder,,,,,not a carpenter....hehe ;) ,,jus playing,,get those "woody" dudes in an uproar.,,,ill rty to make some calls,,,,i stayed WAY away from wooden boats,,,,after i passed out in the hold of my dads 68' wooden novi...hehe ;)

[Landlubber]

the1much,

Mate, you thrive on it don't ya!

We are lucky that you are a happy little vegemite, shit stirring is a profession, and you are good at it.

I can feel the swell rising in the background as all the "Noddys" get excited. ( I am one actually by heart, just have to make a living so I have to play with plastic unfortunately. We do make a lot of wooden interiors and decks and rails though, so i get to keep my hands "dirty").

[the1much]

my best friend tried to talk me into learning to varnish,so i could cover for him and keep him "caught up",,,thats the 1 thing i really ever refused to do in the shop, because i didnt want to,,,,,,all the other "refusals" were jus to be an @ss,,hehe ;)

[xsboats]

Where were you when we built "Spirit of South Carolina"right in your backyard{Charleston}? Check on the "Adventurer" project {also in Charleston}. Contact Sea Island Boatbuilders , They can probably send you in the right direction.