Lost Art Press

Lost Art Press is an independent publishing company based in Covington, Kentucky, that produces books and videos for woodworkers, hand-tool enthusiasts, and collectors of traditional craft knowledge. Founded in 2007 by Christopher Schwarz and John Hoffman, the company was established around the idea that many historically important woodworking skills had been neglected or obscured by the increasing dominance of industrial machinery and mass production. Its publishing program seeks to recover those techniques and present them in practical forms for contemporary workshops. The company’s editorial focus combines historical research, workshop instruction, and advocacy for durable furniture making. Its books commonly address hand tools, traditional joinery, furniture design, tool selection, workshop organization, and the working methods of earlier craftsmen. Rather than treating hand tools and machinery as mutually exclusive, Lost Art Press presents traditional skills as a complement to modern equipment. The company’s stated approach is to help woodworkers make furniture that is crisp, well proportioned, strong, repairable, and capable of lasting for generations. Lost Art Press publishes contemporary authors, including woodworkers such as Nancy Hiller and George R. Walker, while also republishing or translating historically significant texts. Its catalog has included work connected with André Jacob Roubo, the eighteenth-century French cabinetmaker and author; Henry O. Studley, known for his highly organized tool chest; and Charles H. Hayward, an influential twentieth-century woodworking writer. This combination of original contemporary writing and revived historical material gives the company a distinctive position within specialist craft publishing. One of the company’s best-known titles is Christopher Schwarz’s The Anarchist’s Tool Chest. The book argues that a relatively small collection of well-chosen tools can support a broad range of furniture-making work and explains how to assemble and house such a kit in a traditional tool chest. Despite its provocative title, the book’s reference to anarchism concerns individual autonomy and an ethical relationship with making rather than political organization. The work has helped define Lost Art Press’s broader philosophy: ownership of useful tools, practical self-reliance, careful design, and resistance to disposable production. The company has also become recognized for the physical quality and design of its books. Its titles have been printed in the United States, and the publisher has generally sold directly rather than relying on mass-market retailers or large commercial websites. This direct, specialist model supports a close relationship with a focused audience of craftspeople and collectors, while allowing Lost Art Press to publish technically demanding or historically specialized works that may not fit conventional commercial categories. The publisher’s profile extends beyond books through instructional videos and other educational material. Its audience includes professional furniture makers, serious amateurs, hand-tool collectors, historical woodworking researchers, and readers interested in the cultural meaning of craft. Lost Art Press received Covington’s Authenti-CITY award in 2022, recognizing its contribution to the city and its reputation among hand-tool woodworking enthusiasts. Deluxe editions of its books on Roubo were also selected for Design Observer’s annual list of notable books in 2013 and 2017. Overall, Lost Art Press occupies a specialist position at the intersection of independent publishing, craft education, historical preservation, and woodworking culture.

Lost Art Press was established in 2007 by Christopher Schwarz and John Hoffman in Covington, Kentucky. The company emerged as a specialist publisher serving woodworkers and collectors of traditional hand tools at a time when interest in historical craft methods was being renewed alongside broader enthusiasm for small-scale, low-technology, and “unplugged” workshops. Its name refers to the skills and practices that the founders believed had been overlooked as woodworking became increasingly associated with industrial machinery and standardized production. From the beginning, the publisher’s role was not simply to promote an earlier form of woodworking. Its editorial approach presents hand tools as part of a broader workshop system that can also include machinery. Traditional methods are treated as useful, adaptable techniques for modern makers, particularly when they improve accuracy, proportion, durability, or the maker’s understanding of materials. This philosophy gives the company a practical rather than purely antiquarian identity. The catalog developed along two complementary lines. The first consists of contemporary instructional and analytical works by modern woodworkers. These books address such subjects as furniture construction, workshop practice, tool selection, design, and the development of reliable hand skills. Authors associated with the company include Nancy Hiller and George R. Walker. The second line recovers older woodworking literature and historical knowledge, either through republication, translation, or newly produced books about notable craftsmen and artifacts. Historical subjects have been particularly important to the company’s identity. Lost Art Press has published material concerning André Jacob Roubo, whose eighteenth-century writings document French woodworking, cabinetmaking, and related trades. It has also produced books about figures and objects associated with twentieth-century and historical woodworking, including Henry O. Studley and Charles H. Hayward. These projects connect practical instruction with primary sources, historical context, and close attention to the tools and working environments of earlier makers. Christopher Schwarz’s The Anarchist’s Tool Chest became one of the publisher’s defining publications. The book presents the proposition that a compact collection of high-quality tools can support the construction of a wide range of furniture. It also explains how to select tools and build a suitable chest to contain them. The title’s use of “anarchism” expresses an ideal of individual independence and an ethical commitment to making durable objects, rather than a conventional political program. The work helped crystallize Lost Art Press’s interest in self-reliance, long-lived furniture, and a deliberate alternative to disposable consumer goods. Lost Art Press has emphasized the production quality and specialist character of its publications. The company has stated that its titles are printed in the United States. It has also generally avoided mass-market retail channels and large commercial websites, choosing a direct relationship with its audience instead. This distribution model is consistent with its subject matter: the books are aimed at readers who are willing to seek out specialized knowledge and invest in durable tools, materials, and references. The company’s work has received recognition outside the woodworking press. Deluxe editions of two Roubo-related books were named among Design Observer’s annual “50 Books of the Year” selections, one in 2013 and another in 2017. In 2022, Lost Art Press received Covington’s Authenti-CITY award, which highlighted the publisher as a destination and cultural asset for the hand-tool woodworking community. The company also produces videos, extending its educational role beyond printed books. Lost Art Press remains best understood as an independent specialist publisher rather than a general-interest media company. Its business and editorial identity are built around the preservation, interpretation, and continued use of woodworking knowledge. By combining modern instruction with historical source material, it serves both practical makers and readers interested in the cultural history of craft.

• 2022

  Authenti-CITY award

  [1]Lost Art Pressen.wikipedia.org

  Covington recognizes Lost Art Press with an Authenti-CITY award for its local identity and importance to the hand-tool woodworking community.

• 2017

  Second Roubo deluxe edition receives design recognition

  [1]Lost Art Pressen.wikipedia.org

  A second Roubo-related deluxe edition is included in Design Observer’s annual selection of notable books.

• 2013

  Roubo deluxe edition receives design recognition

  [1]Lost Art Pressen.wikipedia.org

  A Lost Art Press deluxe edition related to André Jacob Roubo is selected for Design Observer’s annual notable-books list.

• 2007

  Lost Art Press is founded

  [1]Lost Art Pressen.wikipedia.org

  Christopher Schwarz and John Hoffman establish Lost Art Press in Covington, Kentucky, as a publisher focused on woodworking books and videos.

A specialist, craft-centered publisher that preserves historical woodworking knowledge while translating traditional hand-tool methods into practical guidance for modern workshops.

• Woodworking instruction

  The Anarchist’s Tool Chest

  Christopher Schwarz’s book explains how to select a compact set of dependable woodworking tools and organize them in a traditional tool chest. It links tool ownership with self-reliance, careful furniture making, and the creation of objects intended to last for generations. The book is one of Lost Art Press’s clearest statements of its philosophy of combining historical practice with modern workshop use.

• Historical woodworking reference

  Roubo-related publications

  These publications recover and present the work associated with André Jacob Roubo, an eighteenth-century French cabinetmaker and author. They document historical tools, trades, techniques, and workshop knowledge, while making that material useful to contemporary woodworkers and researchers. Lost Art Press has issued deluxe editions of Roubo-related books that have also received recognition for their design and production.

• Woodworking instruction and design

  Woodworking books by contemporary authors

  Lost Art Press publishes original work by modern woodworkers, including authors such as Nancy Hiller and George R. Walker. These books cover practical making, furniture design, hand-tool skills, and the relationship between traditional methods and present-day workshops. They extend the publisher’s program beyond historical reprints into contemporary craft education.

• Video education

  Woodworking instructional videos

  The company produces videos intended to demonstrate woodworking processes and communicate practical knowledge in a visual format. Like its books, the videos serve makers interested in hand tools, traditional techniques, and the effective integration of those methods into modern workshops.

1. 1Lost Art Pressen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Lost Art Press official websitelostartpress.com