Lew (Aurora, MO) holds degrees in Music, Finance and Art. He has taught art history, figurative sculpture, mold making and casting. He is a figurative artist who creates art in bronze and other 3-dimensional mediums.

Mary (Tahlequah, OK) took a basic silver-smithing class in 2005 and has been hooked ever since! She retired from teaching elementary students in 2014. She now spends her time honing her skills and teaching jewelry making classes in her studio. Her creations are featured in several galleries, and Mary shows her work at Fine Art Festivals in Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri and Arkansas and has won numerous fine art awards.

Shelli (Big Bear City, CA), MBA, is a full-time working artist participating in juried art festivals primarily on the west coast. She sells her jewelry to retail art show clients as well as to a select handful of fine art galleries nationwide.

Victoria (Arvada, CO) combines the old renaissance art of blacksmithing with today’s tools and welding technology for an ultimate union in making steel sculptures that can be found in various Colorado city parks and Denver galleries.

Matthew (Wolcott, CT), ABS Journeyman smith and Forged in Fire Champion, has been a full-time smith since 1998 specializing in historical blades and culinary knives. He has won several awards for his knives, has written for Knife Magazine and had his work featured in many publications.  Matthew has taught bladesmithing throughout the US since 2007 and is a partner in Falling Hammer productions and its subsidiary Dragons Breath Forge. 

Ken (Greensboro, NC) is an award-winning watercolorist and full-time painter and instructor, 30 years an Illustrator working with advertising agencies and design firms. In his early 30’s, Ken was a Senior Artist for Walt Disney World. Ken is a graduate of Kendall College, Grand Rapids, MI.

Joe (Strafford, MO) started welding and working with metal at age 13, and found a way to turn his industrial experience into an art form. He has been represented by art galleries throughout Missouri and has sculptures in municipal shows in Missouri, Illinois and Iowa.

Sally (Broadview Heights, OH) is a retired secondary and college art instructor. She currently teaches painting and drawing at a regional art center in Ohio. She is a signature member of numerous art organizations including the Ohio Watercolor Society, the Pennsylvania Watercolor Society, and the Whiskey Painters of America, among others, and has had several solo exhibitions and won many awards for her paintings.

Kimberly (Cookville, TN) is an Associate Professor of Art with a BFA in Ceramics and an MFA in Furniture Design. She has taught at Penland School of Crafts, Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, Anderson Ranch Art Center, The Center for Furniture Craftsmanship and the Appalachian Center for Craft.

James (Eureka Springs, AR) has taught painting and drawing workshops to neighborhood groups and at ESSA, and has years of experience in providing training and instruction in business, science and computer software programs.