Blacksmithing is enjoying a resurgence. Samantha Laurie visits one family leading the revival...
It’s a wet, windy January morning at the Quinnell School of Blacksmithing in Leatherhead. I’ve got one hand on the air vent, the other on a red-hot poker submerged in hot spitting coals.
Sam Laurie
I’m ‘managing my forge’ – and there’s nothing quite like it: a roaring fire, white-hot metal, sparks fizzing and hissing around me. I heat the tip until it’s white hot, then bash it into shape on the anvil. It’s all very tactile and primitive. And utterly compelling.
Blacksmithing is enjoying something of a revival, partly thanks to video games such as Minecraft and shows like Forged in Fire, as well as a growing appreciation for the handmade, bespoke and long-lasting.
And here in Surrey, the Quinnells are among those helping to keep this traditional craft alive.
Quinnell Blacksmithing
The family blacksmith firm was established in 1932, but it was during the 70s that Richard Quinnell MBE took artistic blacksmithing to new levels, creating some of the world’s finest 20th-century ironwork, including the gates to Shakespeare’s Globe.
Today, it’s run by Tom, Richard’s grandson and the fifth generation of the family to work at the Rowhurst Forge.
After 15 years with Mercedes-Benz, Tom returned home to work alongside his mum, Lucy, who runs the adjoining Fire & Iron Gallery.
This exhibition space, museum and gift shop is home to an extraordinary collection of British metal art, with everything from delicate jewellery and ornate door hooks to life-size creatures and giant cast iron sofas.
The family’s main business has always been commissions. It’s a mix of public art projects, such as the Dorking Cockerel – a three-metre tall steel landmark on the Deepdene roundabout outside the town – and private client work: ornate garden gates, trellises and sculptures, some of which take months to create.
Quinnell Blacksmithing
“We think of it as jewellery for buildings,” says Lucy. “Like a brooch or a necklace, we create very special pieces that will last forever.”
However, over the past couple of years, the demand for recreational courses has surged.
This year, Tom has 49 planned: one- or two-day courses in which students (10 max) make keyrings, hooks and bottle openers, before moving on to their own designs, such as bird tables, garden ornaments and hanging basket holders.
So popular are the courses – many return time and time again – that he’s launched a blacksmithing club. Every Friday, up to four students come and work on their own projects in a separate area of the school. Many bring their own items to recycle – one of the greatest attractions of steel is that it can almost always be re-forged.
Quinnell Blacksmithing
Tom also runs therapeutic courses for children with special needs, many of whom are teenagers with autism who thrive in the calm, hands-on environment.
Despite the noise and heat, everything here is organised and carefully supervised. Tom is supremely patient. And the forging itself is utterly engrossing.
Time flies – it takes me over two hours to heat, hammer and craft a small leaf keyring. I look around at the commissions underway, one of which is a 10ft sidegate twirled with glorious photo-realistic wisteria and irises, together with – I can’t help but notice – hundreds of tiny leaves, all rather more lifelike than mine.
The hand-crafted gifts in the gallery next door suddenly look immensly good value. But I take my leaf home with pride – so much time and effort has gone into it. I might even return to tackle something bigger.
- Courses cost £289 (one day), £459 (two days); the club is £179 a day (experience on a course needed). £25 off for Sheengate readers using the code REDHOT25. Courses for 11+ (under 16s with an adult); blacksmithing-school.co.uk.
- Fire & Iron Art Gallery is open Wed to Sat, 11am-5pm; fireandiron.co.uk
- This year sees the launch of a new mobile Children’s Blacksmithing programme: hour-long private courses for children of 5+ years. Courses are taught one-to-one, with specialised child-sized aprons and tools. See more info at blacksmithing-school.co.uk/the-young-qsb
