Heartland Blacksmiths: Conversations at the Forge
(Part of the Shawnee Books Series)
Select Format
Select Condition 
Book Overview
This collection of interviews with blacksmiths, old and young, male and female, challenges preconceived notions about practitioners of this ancient craft. Among the nine working smiths within a 100-mile radius of St. Louis, Richard Reichelt finds a wide range of personalities, backgrounds, work created, and reasons for being a blacksmith.
Consider just three blacksmiths included in this book. Les Ostendorf is a farm blacksmith who sees smithing as an essential occupation; farmers depend on him to repair their machinery.
L. Brent Kington, Director of the School of Art at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, is known worldwide for rekindling an interest in blacksmithing during the past decade and a half. Roberta Ann Elliott-Francis is often faced with disbelieving customers when they discover she is the creator of the artful metalwork she sells.
Richard Wilbers and Richard Reichelt, in nearly seventy black and white photographs, document each smith's work.
Customer Reviews
ThriftBooks ® and the ThriftBooks ® logo are registered trademarks of Thrift Books Global, LLC
