Moving Steel!

The ring of a blacksmith’s hammer on an anvil. The roar of a bellows pumping air. These are sensory cues linked to the fading art form of Blacksmithing, a discipline that engages the mind, body and soul. Much that we take for granted in the modern technological world has a foundation in metallurgy.  Railways, trains, seagoing vessels skyscrapers, automobiles and more, owe their existence to it. Actually, the difference between a developing society and a technologically advanced one is in part due to the state of its metallurgical arts.

A modern hobby Blacksmith makes tools, art and many useful things that you simply cannot buy off a rack someplace. The process of fashioning an object you can see in your mind’s eye into reality is expressive. Africans and African-Americans have a complex heritage with “metal health”. The chains that once held us in bondage were forged by a Blacksmith. Most of the useful implements found on early farming homesteads were the fruits of an anvil.

Join us for a brief journey into the heart of the Blacksmith’s art and the virtual video premiere of “Moving Steel” a new 30-minute documentary about the Mind, Body and Soul of African-Americans and our love affair with good Steel.

There will be a panel discussion with the metal artisans and the filmmakers after the screening.