🔥Metal Smithing: Forging Fellowship

With Graham Van Houten

Unleash your creativity and craftsmanship as you step into the ancient tradition of blacksmithing. Learn to manipulate metal with fire and hammer, shaping raw iron into functional works of art.

Graham van Houten is a visual artist who has been studying blacksmithing and blade smithing since 2018. He graduated from OCADU in 2007, and maintained a practice and studio in Toronto for a decade, branching into illustration. In 2018 he took a one day workshop on axe making and was immediately taken with the craft. In 2019 he attended the Haliburton School of Art and Design, living in a small cabin for the winter. His focus on blacksmithing brought together his love for art & design, traditional skills, the outdoors, science and history. In 2020 he began working as an apprentice to Douglas Morlock, immeasurably benefiting from his years of experience and expertise. Graham hopes to pass on his love for this once ubiquitous craft through teaching and demonstrating traditional metal artistry.

Puukko Knife Making

In this three day course you will create your very own fixed blade knife, based on the traditional knife of the Saami people of Lapland; the “Puukko”. You will design, forge, grind and heat treat the blade, as well as build your own handle from a variety of materials. We will discuss blade profile, ergonomics and handle geometry, and put these principles to use creating a functional work of art. In addition to making your own complete bush knife, you can expect to leave with all the basic skills to create your own knives at home using a minimal set up. Most of the weekend will be spent grinding, and students can expect to get very dirty. Students will be asked to sign a health and safety waiver. Ear plugs, masks and safety glasses will be provided.

• This course starts on the Friday Morning @ 10am – Sunday @5pm. *4 participants.

With Abby Fry

Explore the delicate art of cold forging copper, where metal meets meticulous precision. Delve into techniques that allow you to sculpt copper with ease, creating intricate designs and textured surfaces that captivate the eye. From jewelry-making to decorative accents, cold forging unlocks a world of possibilities for expressing your unique vision in metal.

Abby is a creative whirlwind of kinetic energy. She has been a self employed maker/ artisan for the past 20+ years. With a background and passion for the arts (with a BFA from OCAD /NSCAD) Abby loves to shape spaces that invite exploration through interactive nature based art practices, traditional skills & crafts. As of late Abby has been practicing as a Conscious Dying Coach and Death Doula supporting others in their life transitions and bringing awareness to topics surrounding death. Her passion for relational dynamics rests as the cornerstone of her work and she believes that through process based activities we are able to foster deep connections with the natural cycles of life, ourselves and one another. 

Abby has been stewarding the land at Coyote Tales Farm Studios for the past 6+ years and is dedicated to continue building a community platform for others to come enjoy, create, learn and connect! Previous to this landing here she lived nomadically for over 10 years, fostering an alternative lifestyle of radical self reliance while supporting herself with her jewelry and stone cutting work.

Copper Jewelry & Creations

In this two full day workshop we will be exploring the simplest tools, to create beautiful hand crafted copper pieces. As we build a relationship to this amazing material we will discuss a wide range of topics related to working with copper and have lots of time to play and tryout various methods used by smiths all over the world. You will come away from this workshop with developed skills/ techniques, a new appreciation for copper and pieces that you have crafted as reference and testament of the processes used in their creation. As well as a materials package that will invite you to continue creating at home!

• This course starts on Saturday @ 10am – Sunday @ 5:00. *4 participants.

With Donna Hiebert

Embark on a journey of refinement and elegance with silversmithing, where sterling silver becomes your canvas. Learn the techniques of shaping, soldering, and polishing silver to perfection, crafting quality pieces that stand the test of time.

Donna Hiebert, the founder of the Hammer Jewellery Studio School, is a working artist
and jeweller. She completed her BFA at NSCAD University in 1985. 
Donna’s work includes intimate jewellery, large scale public sculpture, installation works,
and poetry. Informed by intuitive revelation and inspired by sacred geometry, she is best
known for her monumental public sculpture, The Wave, on the Halifax Waterfront,
commissioned in 1988, and beloved by generations of Haligonians and visitors alike.
Donna teaches metal smithing and jewellery classes and workshops in her loft studio in
the historic Federal Building in the heart of downtown Hamilton.  
https://www.donnahiebert.com/collections/the-hammer-jewellery-studio-school-classes- and-workshops. Contact: [email protected], 905 869 9907

Exploring the Monad

In this workshop you will learn:

• The fundamentals of hard soldering non-ferrous metals
• Basic non-ferrous metallurgy
• Introduction to constructing with sterling silver
• You will create a sterling silver metal ring that will introduce you to:
  o Accurate measuring and marking on metal using specialized hand tools
  o Sawing, filing
  o Soldering
  o Dapping and forming metal
  o Annealing. And an explanation why understanding and performing this
  process is a cornerstone of metal smithing non-ferrous metals.
  o Simple patterning
  o Finishing basics
  
• Course fee includes materials and step-by-step instructions for your project.

• This course starts on Saturday @ 10am – Sunday @ 5:00pm. *4 participants.