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Tryon Arts and Crafts School is well known throughout the area for providing education and instruction in arts and crafts. One of the many workshops that it offers is a Welded Metal Sculpture Basics class taught by local sculptor David Edgar. 

 

In the blacksmith shop between the main building and the tennis courts at Harmon Field, what is old is being made new again, as Edgar teaches his students how to weld and work with metal.  When a bucket of old horseshoes was left on the TACS doorstep, David knew just what to do with them. He shaped them into the familiar shape of a human face, and had a prime example of the type of work expected from those that take the class. 

In Edgar’s class, he teaches students of all skill levels not only the basics of welding, but how to create sculpted art with found items. The course focuses on learning the technical and safety aspects of wire feed welding while having fun creating sculptures of all types, such as masks, figurative pieces, and garden art. 

Edgar has a prestigious background, typical of TACs instructors. He is a professional artist known for his sculptures and a retired art educator who taught at UNC-Charlotte. Highlights of his career include being an Imagineer for Disney in the early 80s and co-writing a book, Fantastic Recycled Plastic, with his wife, Robin Edgar, about his passion for sculpting and creating with consumer-based recycled materials.

“TACS really does stand out, not only in the facilities’ quality but also in the instructors and variety of classes,” Edgar says.  “It has the potential to be as nationally regarded as other schools, such as Penland School of Crafts.”

 

To see more of David’s work, go to his website, plastiquarium.com. The session for his class begins on January 9. Spaces are available, and to learn more about David’s workshop or others at TACS, check out tryonartsandcrafts.org or stop by their campus at 373 Harmon Field Road.