IronLotusArtworks Posted January 13, 2017 Share Posted January 13, 2017 Kind of a combination introduction to the community, and inquiry. Been a lurker for quite a while, and am really thankful for all the great info stored here! Anyway, as a bit of background; I've always loved metal work. I was interested in all kinds of Art, but was never any good at drawing (born lefty, but was converted), and found in high school that machine shop had piqued my interests. But I was told college was the thing for one with my test scores, so I went and gave engineering school a shot. Not the line of work for me. Then, about four years ago I was up late one night and saw a special on PBS in the shop of a Smith in Mobile who did simply beautiful work. I soon started taking forging lessons every weekend and was absolutely hooked. A year or so after starting lessons, an instructor invited me to move to Birmingham (AL) where I still reside to help form and work in a shop and give beginner level lessons. Long story short, I slowly came to realize said instructor was scamming myself and everyone else involved. So, I've been working with other metal artists in town as much as they need my help, but it just isn't making ends meet. If someone knows of a shop in or near Bham that needs a helping hand, even if only part time, I would greatly appreciate the chance to apply. A sizeable portion of my body of work can be found at: www.facebook.com/iron.lotus.artworks By the way, sorry if there was a more appropriate board. I looked around and this seemed the one most related to the topic. Thanks so much for your time spent reading, and again for the wealth of knowledge this forum provides to Artists. Have a good one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted January 13, 2017 Share Posted January 13, 2017 hello, glad you came out of the shadows. And good luck in your search. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 13, 2017 Share Posted January 13, 2017 Yep that happens; I knew a guy that wanted to "apprentice" and found a smith that would take him---only later he told me that the Smith was only using him to do grunt labor for lowgrade items he was selling and he wasn't learning smithing at all. Well at least he learned *something*! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronLotusArtworks Posted January 13, 2017 Author Share Posted January 13, 2017 1 minute ago, ThomasPowers said: Yep that happens; I knew a guy that wanted to "apprentice" and found a smith that would take him---only later he told me that the Smith was only using him to do grunt labor for lowgrade items he was selling and he wasn't learning smithing at all. Well at least he learned *something*! Yeah, luckily mine wasn't quite *that* bad, but he did do stuff like collect rent for the shop from myself and other members that never made it to the Landlord, took donations for a non-profit I later found out didn't exist, accepted deposits on jobs he never finished, and things of that ilk. I couldn't have my name tied to a reputation like that, so now I'm just trying to exhaust all my options before I end up in some restaurant or something. Kinda seems like that would make the next metal working job even harder to come by. Plus, I'm trying to get to the skill level that I can do a traditional Journeyman phase of my career. 59 minutes ago, Daswulf said: hello, glad you came out of the shadows. And good luck in your search. Thanks, Daswulf! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted January 13, 2017 Share Posted January 13, 2017 Welcome aboard Lotus guy, glad you delurked. Been there myself, I was renting shop space from a guy who ended up using my section of the shop for his storage and. . . Nevermind. I think we've all been there to one degree at some time in our lives. Don't be surprised to find yourself flipping burgers to pay your overhead till you get a smithing business up and going. That's the norm, it's not a commercial trade in the US anymore, not really. Backsmithing is a niche craft for the most part. Industrial smithing is typically done under BIG HONKIN power hammers, not a guy with a hammer and or a striker or two. Decorative and architectural smithing takes time to get a product/brand name in the public eye and develop a market. It's just another example of life getting in the way of plans. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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