Forging Connections

April 27-28, 2012 Petaluma, CA

Online registration is open. The cost for full conference attendees will be $125 for early registration and $150 past April 1st, 2012. You must be a CBA Member to attend. The price of admission includes:

online event registration
by Regonline

If you would like to print the form and mail it in, click this link: 2012_Spring_Conference–Registration_Form. It will also included in the upcoming March/April 2012 CBA magazine.

In addition, there will be a Banquet Saturday night before the auction. Tickets for the banquet are $25.

Location:

Sonoma-Marin Fairgrounds
175 Fairgrounds Drive, Petaluma, CA 94952

Google map of fairgrounds

Weather:

Click here for the weather forecast.

Lodging:

Hotel Accommodations:

Make your reservations directly with the Best Western Petaluma Inn. Be sure to mention you are with CBA to receive room block discounts. Rooms start at $79.99 per night. For Reservations call: 707-763-0994

Camping and RV:

There is ample room to camp or park your RV at the Sonoma-Marin Fairgrounds. Conveniently located bathrooms are open 24 hours for guests. Tent camping costs $15 per night and RV parking is $25 per night. Pay onsite at registration for your camping permit.

Demonstrators:

Roberto Giordani – Considered to be an eminent European artist, Roberto Giordani dedicates himself to blacksmith sculpture. Following his family interests, his welder, metalworker and craftsman father Urbano handed down the passion and enthusiasm required to become a blacksmith.

In the beginning Roberto learned the basic techniques of metallurgy and afterwards started his formative path. He attended courses of drawing and sculpture design at “Accademia delle Belle Arti” in Firenze, and a course of recovery, reconstruction and preservation of historical buildings.

Roberto lives and works in Mercato Saraceno (Sapinecchio Art Gallery) where he hosts students from many countries for internship in his lab. He thinks that the blacksmith’s job needs a continuous research and experimentation activity that he himself carries on periodically.

Brian Russell – Mastering new techniques and materials has continued to stimulate Brian’s creative vision, each new work allowing a synthesis of ideas.

Since 1999 he has adapted a lost wax glass casting technique into a fusion of forged metals and cast glass.

 

Lee Sauder – Following an apprenticeship which started at the age of 12, Lee has journeyed through the US and Czechosolovakia.

Lee is best known in the blacksmithing community for his researches into ancient ironsmelting techniques.

 

Tim Cisneros – Looking forward to sharing with CBA a few of the things I’ve learned from others over the years and maybe give some insight into what I believe to be one of the most important aspects of Blacksmithing, experimentation and discovery. Brett and I will be forging wrought iron which has some unique and remarkable qualities…….and if there’s time, a little tool making. It’s gonna be fun.

 

Brett Moten – Ever since my youth I have been driven by the desire to create. As a farrier I realized the abundant possibilities in working metal in the plastic form. The ability to take a solid form, and through heat and forging turn it into a work of art, never ceases to fire my passion.

 

Erin Simmons – Erin works out of Shingle Springs, California and is well known for his tools. At Spring Conference, Erin will be making a pair of tongs. He will be demonstrating how to draw out reins and make tongs if you do not have a power hammer to work with. He will most likely be asking for volunteers from the audience to participate and strike for him.

 

Education Workshops:

Mark Aspery – Josh Buhlert – Dennis Dusek – Peter Clark

Friday & Saturday – three four-hour sessions on both days

Bring your own personal safety equipment and hand hammer if you have one. Stock and tooling will be provided during the teaching session only. While an effort is being made to provide forges and anvils, some sharing of equipment may be required.

Lecture:

Lecture: Making Your Iron Lighting Safe for Electrical Wiring: design considerations and tips.

Jana Olson – Jana, the proprietor of Panache Lighting in Berkeley, California, has been puttering with lights for over twenty years. As the owner of Omega Too, a store in Berkeley specializing in antique fixtures, she learned about construction and repair of antique lighting. Since selling Omega Too at the end of 2006, she has been running her own repair and restoration workshop, Panache Lighting. She has worked on many iron lights, and sells a line of iron lights including the “Julia”, “Julia” sconces, “Oak Tree Pendants” and others which are copies of period originals. She has also retrofitted many European lights to American standards, and repaired many types of lights from IKEA table lamps to Bradley and Hubbard gasoliers from the late 1800’s. She will speak on various issues to keep in mind when designing and fabricating iron lighting, as she has had to work around many mistakes done by blacksmiths. Hopefully, after this talk, she will never have to do that to one of your lights!

 

“Forging Connections” Competition:

Saturday from 9 a.m. to 12 noon

We’re exploring our conference theme – Forging Connections – with a competition.
All conference attendees, individuals and groups are invited to use the morning to show us what you’ve got!

The Guidelines Create a forged piece of work utilizing at least two types of connections: rivets, collars, etc. It can be functional or pure art. We would also love to see you connect other types of materials – wood, stone, glass, etc. – for extra points!
The Bonus Prizes for the top three winners – the people’s choice selection, voted on by all conference attendees. The winning entries will be auctioned off Saturday evening.

Please bring all material and tooling you will need to create your masterpiece.

Schedule:

Onsite Dining:

Friday

Marks the Spot
Breakfast 8 -10 AM
Lunch 11 – 2 PM
FB Page: Marks the Spot
Website: Marks the Spot

Fish In Chips by Karma Catering
Lunch from 11-2 PM
FB Page: Karma Catering

Saturday

Chicago Style Hotdogs
Breakfast 8-10 AM
Lunch from 11 AM-2 PM
FB Page: Chicago Style Hotdogs

Fish In Chips by Karma Catering
Lunch from 11-2 PM
FB Page: Karma Catering

Fairground Map:

CBA Events

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Calendar

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