Finished products of hard weeks’ of work.

The open iron-casting workshop by Carbon Arts Detroit being hosted more or less continuously throughout the first two weeks of June at 555 Gallery drew to a close this weekend. The open-format workshop culminated on Saturday, June 14th in a twilight metal-pouring that was the pay off to hard weeks of work by metal-casting novices and experts, and facilitated by masters from the Carbon Arts Detroit collective.

The mixer, used to combine fine sand with two-part epoxy, creating a quick-hardening resin for sand-cast molds.

Once one half of a mold is complete, it is framed and dusted with charcoal to pour the other side.

A cross-section of a finished sand-cast mold, awaiting the pour.

The collective emphasizes hands-on experience, and the workshop provided an excellent opportunity for all comers to get down and dirty with the finer points of iron-casting, an extremely complex process involving hard labor, precise chemistry and intensive preparations.

Some of the finished art pieces on display at 555 Gallery.

Detail from a work by workshop leader Casey Westbrook.

Whether participants came with ready-made subject matter, or developed it on the fly, they were schooled in the step-by-step process of creating sand-cast relief molds, mixed and packed into forms until hardened. Each project required a custom approach, delineated by artist-organizers Casey Westbrook and Rachel Wolski, as well as a wide array of artists and participants with all different levels of experience.

Casey Westbrook surveys a mold-in-progress.

I worked side by side with Ren, a bartender who fell in love with metal-casting through one of Carbon Arts workshops, and provided indispensable support to all newcomers. Local photographer Garrett MacLean was on hand throughout the week, working on the project of converting old iron window weights salvaged from his recently-purchased home into new cast-iron skillets for his homestead. These were just a few of the folks coming and going from the workshop, which featured a diverse range of ages and ethnicities; a common hallmark of activities around the 555 Gallery.

Garrett MacLean working on his salvage-based skillet set.

Ultimately, this workshop was a great experience, and much credit is due to all the participants and organizers who worked tirelessly to make it a reality. Those interested are encouraged to contact Carbon Arts for information on upcoming workshops or to plan an iron-casting event of their own. The mobile studio has more then proved their ability to execute a gargantuan undertaking.

The aftermath: wreckage from molds and pour.

Beautiful work by participants in the workshop.

Stay tuned to the 555 Gallery and Carbon Arts Detroit for future iron-casting events!

Carbon Arts Detroit: https://www.facebook.com/carbonarts 555 Gallery: 2801 W. Vernor Hwy., Detroit; 888-495-ARTS ; www.555arts.org