Saugerties Artists Studio Tour Count Down - 10 Weeks To Go

I just came out of our monthly meeting for the Saugerties Artists Studio Tour. Due to my work schedule, I have missed most of the meetings this year. Going to the meeting reminded me of the pending dates of the tour, August 13th and 14th; only 10 weeks away. I was also reminded, by looking around the room, of all the talented people involved in the tour.

One of the artists, Michael Nelson, put together the above video on about nine people who are on the tour. The video is really well done and captures the personalities and perspectives of the variety of artists that live in one town and one weekend a year, feel compelled to open their studios up to the public.

Barbara Bravo, who is featured in the video, is our fearless leader who connects the 40 plus artists together that make this tour happen. Have you ever tried to get a room full of artists to focus on one effort? Believe me, I would deem it impossible if it weren't for Barbara who gets everyone to help out, settle disputes, and unites us to make it happen. Besides all the hours she puts in year round organizing and promoting the tour, she is also a ceramic artist AND a master gardener. Barbara Bravo is a true compassionate unsung hero and leader.

This will be my second year on the tour. Unfortunately, because I am on the tour, I am unable to visit the other artists studios. The video is a joy for me to watch because I am able to get to know the other artists I am associated with. During our meetings leading up to the tour, we do not have the time to talk about our work. I believe I am still the youngest person on the tour. Most of the tour people have been working as full time artists for years. There is much I can learn from them and I love being around them. They have such wonderful personalities.

The tour is August 13th and 14th. For more information, visit the Saugerties Artists Studio Tour website for Artist bios, Tour Map, and general information. 

Intro to Blacksmithing

Last night was my first blacksmithing class and it was AWESOME! The class is being taught by Jonathan Nedbor of Canal Forge who has 35 + years as a blacksmith. There are only six people in the class, including me, so the student to teacher ratio is perfect. The students range from 14 to 70 in age. Its a nice mix of personalities. Jonathan has a great shop, albeit dusty. It ends up that as you heat the metal and then it cools, it can shed a scale that turns to dust when you strike it with a hammer. Everywhere you look within the shop, there is an interesting tool or project. I'm really looking forward to figuring out what some of the odd shaped tools and machines do.

By the end of the first night, Jonathan had us squishing metal. Yes, squishing is a technical term. I made him repeat it twice. Our first project is to take two horse shoes and straighten them out. My two shoes are above. I got through 1 and 1/4 of the second. In the next class, I will continue to straighten the second shoe. Then, I will weld the two shoes together and work on making it a bar of steel. Although it feels awkward right now to handle the metal with tongs, it is incredibly satisfying to see the metal glowing red and shaping it with a hammer on an anvil. It really got my creative juices flowing. 24hrs later and I'm still high off the experience! I will continue to post on my progression and I hope, by the end of the class, to have some finished projects to share.

Ice Skating Locally

Having the ability to ice skate outside, on a real creek, is amazing! The sad thing is,... I can't tell you where we go in fear that someone will try to make us stop. Mind you, we drill consistently and are very aware of safety. But alas, mum is the word.

A hot fire to warm up by.

As a group, we'll make our way two to three miles upstream. Try that on a hockey rink! The views are amazing and you get a great workout. It feels so good to be outside in the middle of winter. In addition to ice skating, we also race motorcycles on the ice. But, that is for another post.