Functional Art
Architectural blacksmith Glenn Gilmore forges ahead
Gilmore in his studio strikes while the
iron is hot. Photo by Tommy McNabb
This expressive and pictorial railing was commissioned
for the corporate headquarters of a major foundation
in Atlanta, Ga. The design elements include squirrels, fox,
birds, rabbits, a person reading a book, oak trees and flowers
all individually hand forged and designed to relate to the
clients’ interests. Photo by Tommy McNabb
This fireplace screen for the Two Feathers Ranch was designed to incorporate the ranch logo with unique hand forged copper feathers, forged steel arrowheads and a southwest Native American pattern for the frame. Photo by Tommy McNabb
This impressive hall table aptly named, Aspen Solace, features a hand formed copper top with a raised ridge design and a steel border band of hand forged aspen leaves and branches set off by a bark texture background. Photo by Tommy McNabb
The
Fleur-de-lis fireplace door in this Vail Valley residence features one of the clients’ two dogs formed from sheet copper using repousse, an ancient metalsmithing technique, where many
small tools and hammer blows are used to bring the image to life. Photo By:
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In explaining his art, Gilmore looks to the history of blacksmithing.
It is hard for people to remember just how much work blacksmiths did before the advent of modern metal machining, he explained.
In Europe, metalsmiths were specialized in guilds. There were smiths who made locks and gates, smiths who made fireplace pokers, and smiths who made anchors. In America the guild system didn’t work as well.
“The blacksmith started to become a general practitioner,” Gilmore said.
An American blacksmith might have forged a plow, fix a wagon wheel and mend your pots and pans, he said. When automobiles came onto the scene a lot of blacksmith shops became auto shops simply because smiths were the people in town who fixed things.
But from the beginning, art has been a part of the trade. Even in the simplest tool, aesthetics are as important as function.
“There is an art in the execution and design,” Gilmore said. “Particularly if a blacksmith is wanting to put his stamp of approval on it.”
Gilmore takes this practical aspect of the trade and translates it into his art. He often forges the tools he uses in the intricate work he creates. Much of his art is forged from plain pieces of steel, rather than welded.
  
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