Classes & Demonstators

[redanvil]

What makes a succsessful class (for student or teacher)?
What makes a successful demonstration?

[saxonwerks]

Well, I can say, having just gone through a week at the Ozark School, that I appreciate a class where the instructor doesn't just show you how good he is. We had lots time to practice the techniques after getting very good demos from Tsur. Since the Hofi hammer technique is not tipical, Tsur made sure that we really understood it and used it rather than falling back on what we were used to. It was a week very well spent for my 16 yr old son and I.

[redanvil]

sounds great.. thats the kind of answer i am looking for..from what i understand Tsur is a heck of a teacher and an excellent blacksmith as well..

[saxonwerks]

We watched him forge a knot in a 3/8 rod, then draw a tail less than 1/8in. by about 7in. long on one end, which he proceeded to curl into a tight little corkscrew. Then forged a churchkey on the other end all in less than 15 min. Yep, he is a good blacksmith. It was a real privilege to Meet he and Tom Clark. You leave there feeling like you were given the keys.

I should add that he did it all with a 3lb+ hammer

[divermike]

After having taken a course with Bill Epps in Campbells Folk School, NC, and David Robertsons ARTIST BLACKSMITH school in Canada, and also Jay Burnham Kidwells course in The Appalachian Center for the Arts in Tennesee, I have found that it is not near enought to be a good blacksmith to teach it. You must be able to discuss what materials you are using, what lengths, etc. And a general discussion about what tools, their uses also is vital to the audience. I am a professional presenter myself so I might be a bit jaundiced. I would much rather have a presenter be able to clearly communicate the tools, techniques and materials, than to get the demo perfect. It also becomes apparent when the teacher is just doing it for the money, instead of the art, and opportunity to pass the knowledge on. The facilities are almost as important, especially for the week long courses, as getting well fed and a good nights sleep is imperative when working 10-12 hrs a day. We are truly blessed to live in a country where we have so many fine schools and presenters willing to commit to the furtherance of the art. I feel a deep debt of gratitude to the men who got this thing going again in the 70's 80's and 90's. For those of you still alive, May God bless you for all you have done.

[mcraigl]

For the student:...
You'd think that you'd show up with a willingness to learn since you're more than likely paying to attend, but... You gotta put aside your preconcieved notions about how something is done and be willing to learn what the instructor is teaching. also, not being afraid to ask questions. Pay very close attention to what the instructor is doing as sometimes there are very small nuances that he/she may not even know how to articulate. Work hard. You'll tend to get a little more personal attention if you're putting yourself out there and trying hard.

For the instructor:
Well, I'm an instructor of sorts, but I'll give my view from the student side of things... I've attended several workshops and classes from different instructors. One thing that Mark Aspery does that I really like. You make the tools first, then use them. Else, you get home and want to try the thing that you learned, but maybe didn't take quite good enough notes or enough pictures of the tooling to reproduce them adequately.