Artwey Special Events and News | Fire & Ice : Portland Arts Centre : Workshops
Fire & Ice : Portland Arts Centre : Workshops
Published: 30th January 2010
Artwey members ran workshops as part of Fire & Ice, the exhibition at Portland Arts Centre in February and March 2010.
Hot Metal Casting in Cuttlefish Moulds : Make A Snowflake!
A group of Artwey artists lead workshops every weekend guiding people through the process to make a piece of jewellery in the shape of a snowflake, by casting hot metal.
So it is Fire & Ice in action!
The snowflake shape is carved into a piece of cuttlefish, harvested from nearby Dead Man's Cove. Another piece is placed alongside and bound together. Hot metal is then poured into it and when cooled the piece is extracted and cleaned up and there you have it.
The image here is of an early attempt, it shows the cuttlefish grain, which is part of the design.
Lead-free pewter is used, it is a high tin alloy which melts below 300 degrees, so is easy to handle and fairly safe, compared to silver or bronze. It is jewellery grade material, suitable for pendants or brooches - a clasp can be attached on the back.
Laurence & Mark Demonstrating - heating the metal.
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