36 Hour Classes
INSTRUCTOR: Ursula Dyrbye-Skovsted, Artisan
COURSE: Metal Work
PROJECT: 18th Century Italian Tulip Chandelier
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This type of colorfully painted Southern European metal chandelier with handcrafted metal flowers has intrigued collectors and home designers throughout centuries. The use of nature in art and decor has always been popular. These elegant chandeliers from the 18th Century were often copied in the 20th Century, but with electric bulbs instead of candles. In this class we will make a 1790’s chandelier for candles.
Students will be introduced to delicate wire and sheet brass work and will go through several techniques in metal work such as: high and low heat soldering, cutting,
engraving, annealing, shaping and bending of brass wire, rod
and sheet. Cleaning the metal, priming, and detail painting
will finish the project. Students will create the body of the
chandelier by bending and shaping brass rod and tube
to matching profiles. Using specially made jigs, the arms
will be silver soldered to form the body of the chandelier.
The basic flower petals and leaf pieces will be cut in stacks from .003 and .005 inch thick brass shim with the jeweler’s saw. They will then be engraved for a realistic texture and
shaped for individual flower petals in a special forming jig. The flower petals are then soldered together to create the
lifelike tulips. The leaves will go through the same procedure.
Then the “bouquet” is created by low heat soldering each flower and leaf onto the body with their stems “growing” down the length of the arms. The chandelier is primed and then painted in the student’s choice of colors and shaded to match the realistic colors of nature. Students will have a choice between a 3 or 4 arm chandelier depending on how fast they work or how willing they are to put in extra hours. The arrangement of the flowers will change slightly.
TIME:
36 hours. Completion likely. Students should finish, but they may need to work some extra hours, as this is an aggressive project; or they may leave out some details.
POWER TOOLS:
drill press, moto tool, flexshaft
SKILL LEVEL:
Intermediate to advanced. Due to the fragile nature of this project, students need some experience working on very fine miniatures. The class involves the handling of hot soldering devices and requires very good eyesight and a steady hand.
MATERIALS FEE:
$115 to be collected at school