2014 Metal Forming Series for Artisans and Jewelers at the Center for Metal Arts

FLORIDA, N.Y. - Jan. 12, 2014 - PRLog -- The 2014 jewelry and fine metal arts program at the Center for Metal Arts offers a foundation program in metal forming and folding techniques with one-day and weekend workshops in the education space of a working metal arts studio. The 2014 program brings regional and international metal arts educators to the tri-state area.

The 2014 workshop series leads off with a 4-hour Sunday Sampler on Foldforming January 19, a Homemade Patinas Sunday Sampler on February 16 and a full day of Foldforming on Mar 15, to prepare attendees for Cynthia Eid's Foldforming +Synclastic & Anticlastic metal forming weekend April 5-6, and the annual late summer event with foldform pioneer Charles Lewton-Brain scheduled for August 1-4, 2014.

Chip Schwartz, who leads off the 2014 metal forming workshop series at the Center for Metal Arts, will hold two Sunday Sampler workshops from 10 AM to 2 PM. The January 19th workshop is Foldforming, which combines origami with forging to create dramatic changes of volume and form in a matter of minutes. The way a copper sheet is folded, how and where it is hammered, and how it is opened determines the finished form. These shapes resemble chased, constructed and soldered forms and can often not be arrived at in any other way in a comparable working time.

This Sunday Sampler will cover basic folds including the popular Rueger fold. Workshop attendees will experiment hands-on with creating organic dimensional forms in copper and enjoy some true "wow" moments as the forms are opened.

In the Homemade Patinas workshop on February 16, Chip Schwartz teaches patination techniques that one can easily and safely do at home, including homemade cold patina recipes, fuming, packing and wrapping to produce different results on silver and copper. The Center for Metal Arts will supply textured and folded copper pieces, and invites attendees to bring their own pieces to patinate.

The Sunday Sampler sessions in January and February are 4 hour workshops offering an introduction to foldforming and patinations. Coffee and refreshments are provided for these mid-day sessions, and the Center for Metal Arts encourages this as a Sunday road trip with a breakfast or early dinner at one of the area's country dining finds, as suggested on the www.centerformetalarts.com website.

On March 15, Chip Schwartz will lead A Day of Foldforming from 9 AM to 4 PM, with a full day of exploring variations on the folded form. The full day workshop is a great introduction to foldforming, as well as a chance for experienced foldformers to further develop their skills.

Instructor Chip Schwartz lives and works in Beacon, NY, where he is the owner of Schwartz Metal Arts. In addition to doing one of a kind jewelry, flatware, and both functional and sculptural hollowware in his Beacon studio, Chip teaches jewelry and metalsmithing classes to groups and individuals. He also works as a patineur and finisher at the renowned Polich Tallix Art Foundry. Chip holds an MFA in jewelry and metal design from East Carolina University and has taught classes and workshops at several colleges, universities, and art centers.

Cynthia Eid, whose Foldforming +Synclastic & Anticlastic Forming workshop is April 5-6,  has recently published a book Creative Metal Forming, co-authored with Betty Helen Longhi, to rave reviews. The 256-page book includes over 700 photos, and widely covers metal forming topics from a dapped disc, to how to hammer, through synclasting, anticlasting, spiculums, and raising a vessel. 35 detailed exercises explain the basics, as well as advanced nuances for each technique.

Whether using hand-made mallets and stakes, or the latest hydraulic press tools, Cynthia’s focus is on exploring the fluidity with which metal can be moved, formed, and joined. Cynthia Eid's metalwork has won awards for creativity and design, has been featured in many publications, and exhibited internationally. With both a BS and MFA in Jewelry and Design, she has worked as a bench jeweler for fine goldsmiths, modelmaker in a gold jewelry factory, and on private commissions. Her work is in museums in the US and UK. Cynthia Eid has taught workshops in the US, Canada, Europe, and Australia. Cynthia's weekend workshop at the Center for Metal Arts April 5-6, is a chance to study her techniques in a well-tooled metalforming studio.

The annual summer highlight of the 2014 sessions is CLB 2014, with foldforming pioneer Charles Lewton-Brain. This year, the theme is Foldforming Boot Camp, and runs from Friday August 1 through Monday August 4.  In a small group setting, attendees will have a chance to explore hands-on work with the most knowledgeable person in foldforming today. As a visionary and pioneer, this internationally lauded professor of Jewellery and Metals at Alberta Canada's College of Art and Design brings wide-ranging topics on foldforming and related arts to the annual event. This year's Foldforming Boot Camp features a mix of full-screen talks, demonstrations of advanced folding techniques, and hands-on time in the metal arts studio under the guidance of Lewton-Brain.

CLB 2014 coincides with the annual Lewton-Brain Foldform Competition, with a preview of the entries at the Friday night dinner, and the announcement of the 2014 competition winners on the last day, August 4. Last year's competition demonstrated the versatility of foldforming, with a wide range of entries such as sculpture works, fine art pieces, and jewelry. See http://youtu.be/GInkdqJpcX8 to view the winners and Jurors' Choice selections of last year's competition.



The Center for Metal Arts is located in the black dirt farm village of Florida NY, in the southern Hudson Valley. The teaching center, located in the historic 1890's Borden's Creamery Icehouse, is partnered with the working studio of Fine Architectural Metalsmiths, an award-winning architectural metal arts company since 1981.The Center for Metal Arts teaching space was launched in 2003, and offers weekend workshops and special events. The upstairs gallery of metal arts and museum of antique tools, with its self-guided tour, is an intriguing educational stop for workshop attendees. The Center for Metal Arts store of specialty forged tools is also in the upstairs gallery at the historic icehouse.

For more information on the 2014 program at the Center for Metal Arts, including the companion blacksmithing workshop series, visit www.centerformetalarts.com and www.facebook.com/CenterForMetalArts.