Forming Techniques for Jewelry

Instructor: Betty Helen Longhi

April 12, 13 & 14 2013

10am – 5pm

Shell forming is a technique originally developed by Heikki Seppa for forming sheet metal into three-dimensional structures.  The process requires the use of one hard metal tool (either a hammer or a stake) and one resilient tool (either a plastic or wood mallet or a plastic or wood stake).  By using one hard tool and one resilient tool the metal can be formed quickly into strong fluid shapes.  The process is appropriate for any size work from small jewelry to large sculpture.

This workshop will cover the following:

1. basic hammering techniques
2. how to control the hammer blows
3. how to choose the appropriate hammer to achieve the desired result
4. how to select or  make the appropriate stake to work on

 Students will experiment with making synclastic and anticlastic forms and creating transitions from one to the other.  Multiple ways of manipulating the surface of the metal to form jewelry will be demonstrated.

Also included will be discussions on how to:

1. Quickly make stakes from wood and plastic and  investigate other  appropriate  materials
2. Refinish or remake hammers from “Flea Market finds”
3. Make patterns for shell formed jewelry designs

The student will leave with a basic understanding of how sheet metal can be worked, how the tools relate to the end product and how to translate this knowledge into their own aesthetic to use in whatever way they wish.

The workshop is appropriate for both beginning and experienced metals students.

Course# 4131315     $$395.

To complete your registration, call: 360-568-7709

Betty Helen Longhi is a nationally recognized metalsmith who creates finely crafted jewelry
and sculpture in gold, silver, and niobium and pewter. A master craftsman, Ms. Longhi incorporates various texturing techniques with forging, shell forming and die forming in her pieces. Her work is recognized for it's sculptural quality,flowing lines and subtle use of anodized niobium as a source of color. Ms. Longhi's work has been exhibited at the Virginia Museum, Delaware Art Museum,
American Craft Museum, South East Center for Contemporary Art and the Renwick Gallery Museum Shop as well as numerous retail galleries. She has marketed her work through the American Craft Council Fairs and Philadelphia and Smithsonian Craft Shows.
Ms. Longhi is a Distinguished Member of the Society of North American Goldsmiths. She has received a number of awards including an Individual Artist Fellowship funded by the Delaware State Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts.A much sought after teacher, Ms. Longhi has lectured on Shell Forming for the Society of North American Goldsmiths and been guest artist at the Univ. of Wisconsin
and the Maryland Institute of Art. She has taught at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Penland School, Parsons School of Design, Peters Valley Craft Center and many more training centers in the USA and Canada. She maintains a studio and retail sales space in her lakeside home near Lexington, NC. To see more of her work, visit: www.fluidexpressionsinmetal.com