UWW art students will help with personal designs
Wisconsin Makers Inc. invites residents of Walworth, Rock and Jefferson counties to participate in its Community “Iron Pour” on Saturday, April 9, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Whitewater.
This is a family-friendly event, with adults and children of all ages welcome to attend.
For $15, participants will be provided with a square-shaped “scratch” mold that they can personalize with their own design with help from University of Wisconsin-Whitewater students. Each scratch mold must be completed no later than 11:30 a.m.
At noon, the “pour team” will fill each mold with molten cast iron. Student art majors from UW-Whitewater will present the completed, 5-inch square by 1-inch deep castings (cast iron plate) to the artists at 1 p.m.
Teresa “Tree” Lind, a UW-Whitewater lecturer of art and design, is the professor in charge of the event, sponsored by Wisconsin Makers, Inc.
“Your unique design will be preserved in Cast Iron for ages to come,” organizers stated in a press release about the event. “Your iron mold sculpture will make a truly unique one-of-a-kind design of your own making.”
The doors open at 9 a.m., the furnace will be fired at 10:30 a.m., and the “pour” will start at noon. There will be a registration table where the sand molds can be picked up. From there attendees will go inside to have art students help with the design.
“The biggest thing to remember is the design has to be backwards for it to turn out correctly when the iron is poured,” Ron Binning, treasurer of Wisconsin Makers said. “You won’t want to miss this exciting event.”
Artists may, if they desire, pre-make their design before the pour. The scratch blocks are available at the MakerSpace weekdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. though it is best to call ahead at (920) 650-2333.
Also on hand Saturday will be well-known fractal artist Tom Wilcox of Silvertongue’s Shop with his 3-D printed metal (stainless steel and sintered bronze) jewelry, and Jewelry by Jessica with her chainmaille jewelry creations.
Attendees will also be able to create hardware lettering art from a large pile of nuts, bolts and hardware. Spell out words or names and then snap a photo for your album or to share with friends on social media.
Wisconsin Makers, a MakerSpace with an educational mission, is located at 200 E. Clay St. in Whitewater, across from the American Legion Hall.
For more information visit Facebook.com/WisconsinMakers.
