It's that time of the year again kids, and I'm off into the wild blue yonder to attend a couple of blacksmithing conferences. The purpose is to expand my repertoire of techniques, make business contacts and improve my business - that is, this is all tax deductible. (grin)

Hi all, I just got back from the Iowa West Public Art Networking Conference in Council Bluffs Iowa. Over all is was pretty good(especially considering Iowa West footed most of the bill, entrance was $25 per person). I got to meet a lot of artists and people associated with public art, but would have liked a little more time to question the artists and administrators about working up to larger installation pieces and the processes involved. We did get to meet Jun Kaneko, ceramic installations artist, and tour his studios which were amazing, and we got to see them installing Jonathyn Borofsky's 30' tall Molecule Man. I watched them weld 2-1/2" thick aluminum plates together using a Mig setup on a trolly and a crazy occilating machine that vibrated the piece as it was welding. The fabricator called it Pulse Puddle Welding, and said that it created a stress free weld. I hope to learn more about it. If they have it again next year I definitely suggest those that are interested attend.

I'm finally back home and somewhat rested up from the Atlantic Coast Blacksmiths Conference at Ashokan, NY. What a truly great conference!

The featured demonstrators, Mark Aspery, Peter Ross and David Norrie were all very good, with different styles and deliveries, providing something to suit almost anyone. Mark Aspery's style of teaching seemed to suit my style of learning particularly well, as he focused on explaining the "why" of things rather than just the "how." I would love to spend some time taking instruction from him. I did pick up a copy of his book, "The Skills of A Blacksmith, Volume 1", and from what I have read so far it is a really excellent teaching tool for the beginning blacksmith and a great reference for the professional as well. I'm sure you'll all see me quoting from it in the future.

Maybe everyone has already heard of The Guild of Metalsmiths 30th fall conference. But thought I'd post it anyway... just in case. They are having Jay Close from Charlotte, NC demo as well as L. Japheth Howard form Salisbury, MO.... to check out the details go to http://www.metalsmith.org/act/index.htm#Conferences