Start your year off right with something new! We won’t be drinking but things will get hot and sweaty while we Bang in the New Year!

This class is limited to 6 students. Experience what it's like to work hot steel. Students will learn to create a leaf. Focus will be on the fundamentals of hammer control to get the steel to respond the way we want it to. The class will go over the basic operations of isolating material, forming, and finally texturing with the anvil and hammer to give the leaf life.

This class is an excellent way to get a taste of forging. Candy will use a combination of demonstrations and hands-on instruction to enhance your learning experience.

This class is limited to 6 students, is from 8 PM to Midnight on January 31st.

Candace started blacksmithing in 2006 and has explored many aspects of working metal. Through her explorations she has developed a strong belief that regardless of what you create a strong foundation in the basic, fundamental techniques is critical. All her classes incorporate this focus on developing strong foundational skills.

This two-day workshop introduces students to the safe and effective use of the power hammer for forging steel.

Students will learn how the machine works and how to control hot material beneath the dies. Demonstrations will cover drawing out, tapering, spreading, isolating mass and creating texture. The class will also address forging temperature, work holding, body position and basic tooling.

Students will practice moving between the power hammer and the anvil as they complete a series of structured exercises. The goal is to build confidence with the machine and develop skills that can support future sculptural, functional or toolmaking projects.

Prior blacksmithing experience is helpful but not required.

Students Should Bring

● Leather steel toe boots or safety-toe boots

● Long natural-fiber pants

● Long-sleeved natural-fiber shirt

● Notebook or sketchbook

● Reusable water bottle

Annalisa Barron is an interdisciplinary artist based in New York City and Rochester, NY. She graduated from Penn State University with a BFA in painting and drawing in 2013 and with an MFA in sculpture from the Pratt Institute in 2017. Her work has been exhibited at the Cooper Union, University of Rochester, Southern Oregon University, BunkerPROJECTS Gallery (Pittsburgh, PA), U.S. Embassy in Nicaragua, NO/GLOSS film festival (UK), and the Anthology Film Archives (NYC). The Kingdom of Back (2017) was featured in Berlin, Germany, as part of GRRL HAUS Cinema’s 2018 European tour. She served as a panelist for the 2020 NYFA Craft and Sculpture Fellowships and is a recipient of NYSCA’s 2021 DEC Regrant Program/Individual Artist Grant. She has received support from the New York Foundation for the Arts, the New York Film and Video Council, the AAUW, the New York State Inspire Grant, Penn State University, and the Simmons-Jansma Project Renew Grant. Currently, Annalisa teaches in the College of Art and Design at the Rochester Institute of Technology. http://www.annalisabarron.com

Experience what it's like to work hot steel in an open and welcoming way. Students will learn the fundamentals of blacksmithing.

Topics will include operation of gas forges; learning about efficient hammer technique; tapering metal; scrolling and bending; and many other topics. Note this class is not a project-based class, so while you may leave with many samples you may not end up with a completed project.

The focus of this class is on building comfort with equipment and developing forging skills. Candy will use a combination of demonstrations and hands-on instruction to enhance your learning experience.

Class will make use of hammers, forges, vises and various other tools found in a smithy.

This class is limited to 6 students.

Who Should Take this class:

This class is open to women of all experience levels. Class will make use of hammers, forges, vises and various other tools found in a smithy.

Candace started blacksmithing in 2006 and has explored many aspects of working metal. Through her explorations she has developed a strong belief that regardless of what you create a strong foundation in the basic, fundamental techniques is critical. All her classes incorporate this focus on developing strong foundational skills.

This three-day workshop introduces forging as a way to develop sculptural form. Students will begin with basic techniques such as drawing, tapering, bending, twisting and spreading. They will then use these processes to create small studies in steel.

Demonstrations will include hand forging, power hammer use, cutting, grinding, fitting and basic joining. Sketching and quick physical studies will help students test ideas before committing to a finished form.

The emphasis is on experimentation and on learning how the behavior of hot steel can influence design decisions. Students will leave with forged samples, sculptural studies and a stronger foundation for using blacksmithing processes in their own creative work.

No previous forging experience is required.

Students Should Bring

● Leather steel toe boots or safety-toe boots

● Long natural-fiber pants

● Long-sleeved natural-fiber shirt

● Sketchbook and pencils

● Reusable water bottle

● Packing materials for finished work

Annalisa Barron is an interdisciplinary artist based in New York City and Rochester, NY. She graduated from Penn State University with a BFA in painting and drawing in 2013 and with an MFA in sculpture from the Pratt Institute in 2017. Her work has been exhibited at the Cooper Union, University of Rochester, Southern Oregon University, BunkerPROJECTS Gallery (Pittsburgh, PA), U.S. Embassy in Nicaragua, NO/GLOSS film festival (UK), and the Anthology Film Archives (NYC). The Kingdom of Back (2017) was featured in Berlin, Germany, as part of GRRL HAUS Cinema’s 2018 European tour. She served as a panelist for the 2020 NYFA Craft and Sculpture Fellowships and is a recipient of NYSCA’s 2021 DEC Regrant Program/Individual Artist Grant. She has received support from the New York Foundation for the Arts, the New York Film and Video Council, the AAUW, the New York State Inspire Grant, Penn State University, and the Simmons-Jansma Project Renew Grant. Currently, Annalisa teaches in the College of Art and Design at the Rochester Institute of Technology. http://www.annalisabarron.com