TIME AND MOTION

This stopwatch belonged to my Great Uncle Henry. I'm currently using it to do time and motion studies for the uniform project at the Art Gallery of Ontario.

Time and motion studies have held a fascination for me since I began trying assembly-line style production methods (generally being the only member of the line). I enjoy making a process more efficient by changing the placement of tools, the order of operations, and the movement of the object being made.  In the past, clothing and quilts have been the products in question but, over the winter, a foray into ceramic slip casting gave me a new opportunity to manage my working patterns.

It is debatable whether work done in this way is natural for humans or whether, as illustrated in the 1927 film Metropolis, it turns us into machines. Feeling the rhythm of work done efficiently and looking to the work patterns of birds and insects in nature, I can't help but think that repetitive work is more akin to a dance or song than an oppression of the spirit; of course with the caveat that the work is done in safe and pleasant conditions with good company and for a reasonable duration.