About

Intercollegiate - Festival of Fire now in its twelfth year has became the Festival of Fire which all parts of the facility will be celebrating all media found & forged in fire. College students from across the nation come together to share techniques, ideas and resources in iron casting, ceramics, glass blowing as well as blacksmithing. A chance for artists from across the nation to come together to share techniques, ideas, and resources in iron casting

Registration

Festival Workshops are an additional fee, see options below!

Friday, September 21 thru Sunday, September 23
$125 per person, includes camping and meals

Saturday, September 22 thru Sunday, September 23
$75 per person, includes camping and meals

Additional days in attendance before and/or after the festival
$50 per person, includes camping and meals

Festival Workshops

Festival Workshops are open to participants of any skill level.

Wood-fire symposium
$120 per person, or $585 per group of five people

Glass workshop
$275 per person

Doodle Bowls for Iron Pour
$45 per person, or $240 per group of six people

What to Bring / Wear

Overnight guests must bring their camping gear including tent, tarp, sleeping bag, pillow, towel, and biodegradable toiletries. Porta potties and outdoor showers are available. We also suggest participants bring closed-toed shoes, dress in natural fiber only, bring layers for varying day and night temperatures including a warm hat, gloves, and jacket and rain gear.
 

Day Visitors

Meals
Served daily under the white tent; you must have a wristband to eat.

8am-10am, Breakfast $5
11am-1pm, Lunch $10
6pm-8pm, Dinner $15

Scratch Blocks
Carving station under the white merch tent, groups are encouraged to call ahead to reserve their scratch blocks.

Small tile $10
Medium tile $15
Large tile $20

Schedule

Thursday
2pm to 8pm / Early Registration for Festival Workshop Participants at the Visitor Center

Friday
8am-8pm / Registration at the Visitor Center
9am-5pm / Kiln Building at the Wood-Fired Kilns
10am (all day) / Glass student work day with guest artists
5pm-6pm / Ceramic Keynote by Jason Hess
6pm/ Lighting of all wood-fired kilns (24-hour firing)
8pm/ Iron performance pour

Saturday
8am-8pm / Registration at the Visitor Center
9am / Gather molds and get on a mold line – discussion of casting process
9am-12:00 pm / Grant and Erin Garmezy Demos
10:30am-2pm / Demonstrations
11am / Saturday afternoon/day – Production Pour – All molds are poured in iron
1pm-4:00 pm / Grant and Erin Garmezy Demos
6pm-7pm / Keynote speech by Grant and Erin Garmezy
8pm / Iron Keynote speech by Jay Wholley
9pm-12am / Live music

Sunday
8am-2pm / Check out at Visitor Center
9am / Clean up and Divest Molds at the Foundry Pit
9am / glass annealer unloading
3pm / Wood-fired kiln unloading

What to Bring / Wear

Day participants are encouraged to dress for outdoor conditions. Typically during the day it is hot, but can also be cold and windy. We suggest bringing pop-up chairs/blankets, closed-toe shoes, and your camera. Check the weather and dress accordingly.

FESTIVAL WORKSHOP DETAILS

Small Wood-Kiln Symposium

Salem Art Works invites teams to build and fire small wood-fired ceramic kilns. Specific refractory materials are provided to build the kiln (listed below,) teams must create their design in advance. During the symposium teams will construct their kiln and must be finished by 5 pm Friday, Kilns will be loaded with ceramic work made by the team members, fired for a maximum of 24 hours, and unloaded on Sunday late afternoon.

The 2018 key note key note for ceramics is Jason Hess, Professor of Art and head of the Ceramics Program at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, AZ. He has a BFA from Beloit College (1992) and an MFA from Utah State University (1996). Hess has exhibited in over 175 exhibitions at galleries, art centers and universities across the US and internationally. His artwork is featured in the collection of The United Postal Service, The Renwick Gallery of The Smithsonian Institute, The Martin Museum of Art at Baylor University as well as a number of private collections. Jason has participated in artist residencies at The Archie Bray Foundation, Red Lodge Clay Center, and The Pottery Workshop in Jingdezhen, China.

Glass Workshop

The Glass Workshop will be led by guest artist team Grant and Erin Garmezy, during the 2018 Intercollegiate Festival of Fire. Learn how to utilize flame-worked glass components and the "ins and outs" of hot sculpting glass in a collaborative, team-oriented manner in Salem Art Works glass studio. This intensive workshop will include demonstrations and hands-on activities throughout the weekend! 

Iron Pour

Our Iron Pour is a chance for teams from across the nation to come together and share techniques, ideas, and resources in iron casting as well as engage in a dialogue on the process. Participants spend the weekend working in groups to prepare molds, furnaces and our pour site. Some other opportunities for this event is exposure to a fire arts performance and keynote speaker.

The 2018 key note speaker for iron is Jay Wholley, who has been showing his work in galleries and museums for over fifty years. He has shown in museums such as the Whitney, NYC, the Detroit Institute of Art, Detroit, MI, the Grand Palais, Paris, France, the Burchfield-Penny in Buffalo, NY, the Trenton Art Museum, Trenton, NJ, the Denver Art Museum, Denver, CO, the Museum of Metals, Memphis,TN, The Harrisburg Art Museum, Harrisburg, PA among others. 
His work has also been shown in art centers such as the Storm King Art Center in Mountainville NY, Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ, the Aspen Center for the Visual Arts, Aspen, CO