Festival of Fire
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2023— SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2023
Conference Workshops
Iron Pour
Workshop for Sand-Mold Making
Individuals and groups with limited to no experience may schedule a one-on-one or group workshop to learn how to make a basic open-face or 2-part mold between June through September. A workshop can be completed in 3 consecutive days or spread out.
Starting rate is $350 for an individual and $250 for a group (6-8 ppl)
Shop Rental for Sand-Mold Making
Artists who have experience with sand-mold making with SAW’s tools and equipment (or comparable somewhere else) may rent SAW’s sand-barn to make molds without assistance.
Fee below:
$45 Consumable flat rate
$25 per day sandbarn rental
$12.50 per 50 lb of sand
$.50 per lb of iron
Bring your own mold:
Artists who do not assist with the pour pay $1 per lb iron
Artists who assist with the pour pay .50 cents per lb of iron
MAKE YOUR OWN SCRATCH BLOCK MOLD
Participants will have the opportunity to make their very own cast iron tile sand mold in this drop-in workshop!
Hand-off your mold to our team to pour in iron and once the pour is over we will clean up the tile for you to take home!
Drop in any time between 10 AM - 2 PM to make your scratch block. Molds won’t be ready to take home until Sunday afternoon. Pouring begins at 3 PM.
Standard Scratchblock: 4”x4”
Saturday 9/23/2023
10 AM - 3 PM
There is a 25% cancellation fee for all workshops and classes if requested with two weeks of prior notice. Deposits and payments are nonrefundable within two weeks of the scheduled date.
Photo credit Dan Crowther
3-Day High Carbon Steel Knife-Making Workshop
In this three-day workshop, ABS Mastersmith JD Smith will assist participants in the design, forging, and finishing of their own high-carbon steel knives.
Topics of discussion will include: What makes a knife a good one? How is the quality of a knife to be discerned? What makes one knife better than another?
Participants will have the opportunity to witness a demonstration of carbon moving in the steel from Alfa to Gamma states and hear an explanation of what this means.
Blade design will include proper form, edge geometry, and balance. Six inches of 1095 steel will be used to forge these blades with particular attention given to working temperature and heat treatment. Finishing will be done with belt sanders, files, sandpaper, and Whetstones. The finished blades will have black paracord and epoxy-wrapped handles.
Participants will be able to test the quality of their finished work on various ropes and woods. JD Smith will test his work on plate steel.
Ceramic Kiln Building & Firing Workshop
Teams (2-8 people) will build and fire a temporary mini wood-fired kiln in this four-day workshop! Pre-registration is required in order to participate. Each team will bring its own bisque ceramic work to be fired in the kiln they construct. Each team will have the same list of supplies and materials to be able to compare and contrast what is possible using the same resources. A list of the refractory materials and kiln wood provided to each team is listed below. Teams will need to design their kiln prior to arrival and in coordination with Jordan Becker, SAW Ceramics Director. Teams are encouraged to complete their designs far in advance. Should they need any support, Jordan is available anytime earlier in the summer to discuss and brainstorm kiln plans if teams so desire. Teams are encouraged to register before August to participate in a Zoom Meeting Jordan will host to brainstorm and discuss kiln designs as a group.
Details
Thursday, September 21 (Arrive between 1 pm to 7 pm) - Sunday, September 24 (Depart at 5 pm)
$695 per team (2 to 8 people)+ individual registration
$275.00 for an individual (will be paired with other individuals to work together remotely)
Refractory and Fuel Provided For Each Kiln Building Team
4’x8’ steel box full of sand
Tractor Buckets of sand to level pad, or build slope
150 - 2.5”x9”x4.5” hard brick
150 - 2.5”x9”x4.5” soft brick
3 - silicon carbide 12”x24” kilns shelves
2 - 12”x12” silicon carbide shelves and posts for interior stacking of work.
1 tub of fire clay mortar
Wadding for pottery in the kiln
Set of cones
1/4 cord of seasoned hard wood, split fine and 8-12 inches in length
1/4 cord of seasoned soft wood, split fine and 8-12 inches in length
LIGHTING THE BUBBLE GLASS WORKSHOP
This collaborative two day beginner glass-blowing workshop will culminate in a group installation focusing on "lighting the bubble." Participants will learn to gather glass and form it into bubbles. The bubbles variation through tool manipulation or augmentation will create lenses of different sorts. Instructor Marc Barreda will amass the student bubbles into a group installation and project light through them during the conference.
Details
Thursday, September 21 - Saturday, September 23
Workshop
Thursday & Friday, 10 am to 5 pm
Glass Installation
Saturday morning - Install
Saturday evening - Project light