The magazine of the British Artist Blacksmiths Association
As a key members-only benefit, BABA is very proud of its magazine that has developed over 47 years from a simple black and white publication into a full-colour, 52-page, glossy magazine
The magazine features a wide range of articles reflecting the work of blacksmiths worldwide. We cover profiles of specific smiths and their work as well as featuring accounts of commissions undertaken.
There is a regular “Tips and Tricks” feature with simple ideas to make life easier in the forge
Although we are particularly keen to record the latest in contemporary design in forged metalwork, articles and images of more traditional work are also welcome. Historic ironwork of note, along with restoration/conservation, is also regularly featured
You will also find news of events such as upcoming conferences, exhibitions, competitions, forge-ins, masterclasses, and workshops.
All are welcome to submit articles. Or, images of work which we display in our photo galleries.
To contribute to the magazine, please contact the Editor - Henry Pomfret -artistblacksmith@baba.org.uk
To advertise in the magazine, please contact Tony Ingarfield - treasurer@baba.org.uk
Artist Blacksmith constitutes a permanent record of the rennaissance of and developments within the world-wide community of those who design and work with hot-forged metals. Copies are held in the British Library in London, along with a number of university libraries.
Online Archive
In addition to receiving regular issues, BABA members will have access to the entire, fully-searchable, online archive of magazines (over 180 issues) via our 'Exact Editions' archive. Members will find a link to the archive in the "My Profile" area
Sample magazine
Want to see what you're missing out on? Here's a little free sample for you to get the feel of what Artist Blacksmith has to offer.
Click on the image to read this issue....
Thinking of contributing?
Have you ever thought about having something of yours featured in the magazine?
We would certainly be interested in seeing or reading about you and your work and I’m sure that goes for the rest of our readership too. Of course, you don’t necessarily have to write anything. Images of work are always welcome.
I don’t know how you feel about writing, some hate it, but as editor I’d be happy to help. If you can produce even a very rough draft, I can edit, correct, and make suggestions as to points to clarify or gaps to fill etc. Spelling and grammar are easily corrected so don’t let that put you off. If that is still too difficult, we might arrange a time for a telephone interview which would be recorded. If you’re comfortable with writing, then dive in.
If you would consider contributing, there are a number of approaches, requiring very little, to rather more effort. Any of the following would be very much appreciated
1) Single images
If you have a specific image or images that you think folks may like to see, just send it/them along at any time. We may include it/them in a general “Gallery” section. Always good to have a store of images to draw on.
2) Multiple images
As a more specific “Gallery” piece, we may create a one or two-page layout with a collection of maybe three to six images of pieces by one artist. This would include some explanatory text but is limited to a paragraph or two. Somewhere in the region of 100 to 150 words maximum. Just enough to give the reader a small insight. A very brief description or something about the inspiration or the artist’s philosophy. I think this adds to what would otherwise be just a page of random images. The more images the better, so we can make a selection.
3) Commissions - images
We may also produce one to two-page “Commission” layouts. This is pretty much the same as 2 above but all the images would relate to one specific commission. This could be shots of the finished piece along with some detail shots, or perhaps some images that clearly show aspects of the making. Again, with just a very brief (100-150 words) text outline of the commission.
4) Commissions – an article
If you’re feeling more adventurous, how about an article about a commission you’re particularly pleased with or that has an interesting story.
The content could run 2–6 pages, around 1,500–2,000 words, with an image or two per page. It may seem like a lot, but the story builds quickly more images always help.
5) A Profile
You could write a profile piece about you and your work.
This could be the story of your journey to where you are now, or your work philosophy, or how your work has developed, or the style changed over time. Or something else. How you approach this is entirely up to you. Such articles have been running to between four and eight pages with 1000 to 2500 words and a number of images.
or
6) Something else:
If there’s another subject entirely you would like to write about, we’re open to suggestions for anything that might be of relevance or interest to an artist blacksmith.
Not sure how to approach this? Please feel free to contact me, I’m always open to talking about ideas for articles/features
Henry Pomfret, Editor. artistblacksmith@baba.org.uk (UK) 07709 579144
And don’t forget
Alan Dawson is always looking for contributions to the “Tips and Tricks” pages, so if you have a useful tip or gizmo you would like to pass on to the BABA membership, please contact him. One or two photographs and a few brief words of explanation is all it takes. alandawson.adaptahaus@gmail.com
Sending Images? Points to consider...
When considering images to send, could you please:
1) Send them at as high a resolution as possible. Images lifted from websites or social media are unlikely to be of use.
If sending from an iPhone, choose "Actual Size" on an Android phone, Choose "Original Size". WhatsApp tends to reduce resolution so what may look fine on a phone, will not necessarily be of print quality
2) Ensure that the images are not blurred and try to avoid confusing backgrounds where possible.
3) If you did not take any given photograph yourself, please give the name of the photographer so they can be credited.
4) Give a title or caption for each image. This will help us greatly as multiple images with titles such as IMG26934.jpg or similar, it can be difficult for us to make sense of them. Please, either remame the files or write a numbered list as a separate file.
5) Please do not place images in a ‘Word’ or other text document. We will have to extricate them, which is difficult, time consuming and may not result in a high enough resolution to print. Please send separate text and image files.
6) Most people shoot in landscape mode (wider than tall) and that is absolutely fine, but images in portrait (taller than wide) can be particularly useful when laying out the magazine and also for cover photos.
More images are always better than fewer. if you have multiple shots from different viewpoints, it gives us more choice to select what works best in the layout.
Worried about files being too big to send?
If you are concerned that sending large files or multiple files could be a problem over email, then we suggest that using WeTransfer may be the answer. It is so quick and easy to use, and you can send up to 2 gigabytes FREE. That’s a lot of large images and text files. DropBox, Google drive or similar can work too.
We can deal with most file formats e.g RAW, Photoshop, JPEG, PDF, PNG, TIFF etc
Please send anything you have for the magazine to: artistblacksmith@baba.org.uk
Reproduction, Copyright and Responsibility
‘Artist Blacksmith’ is the official publication of the British Artist Blacksmiths Association.
The contents of this publication may not be reproduced either whole or in part without the permission of the Editor or the individual contributor. This material is copyrighted for the sole protection of the contributors.
While every care is taken in the selection of material for ‘Artist Blacksmith’, The British Artist blacksmiths Association does not necessarily share the views expressed, nor does it accept responsibility for the accuracy of any statements made by the contributors.
