Fetty Takes Blacksmithing Into the 21st Century

"My father-in-law gave me the tools and the skills, but it took me a long time to learn the craft," Fetty said. "I still find great satisfaction in taking a dead, inert piece of cold metal and turning it into something that will last for generations. I learn something new every day."
 
Fetty has developed a product line that includes a variety of sculptural bowls, candleholders, tables and, of course, fire tools.

However, in addition to these items, he has crafted a multitude of major commissions for clients across the country. “Probably the largest, most meaningful commission was The Gates of Heaven project, a two-and-a-half year job for the First United Methodist Church in Clarksburg,” Fetty said. The 12-panel mural was researched and designed by Fetty and his assistants based on Biblical messages and scriptural references provided by the church committee. The end result was a 16' x 23' mural in forged steel, stainless steel, copper and bronze.

Fetty's hand-forged lily table features a glass top that allows anyone seated at it to appreciate the intricate detail of the base.

(30"x 54")

Photo by Gefetti

This nearly six-figure commission was quite challenging. "It was great, not only from the business end of it, to pull off a major commission of this magnitude, but it was also a great spiritual adventure," Fetty said. On the heels of this significant project, Fetty was commissioned to sculpt a flower garden at the entrance of the Trace Fork Shopping Center along US Route 119 south of Charleston. And just this past summer, Fetty began work on a contemporary stairway design for an oil and gas exploration company in Charleston.

"It is designed so that as you walk up the staircase, the risers and rail will give the user the feeling that they are walking through the strata of the Earth," Fetty said, adding that he and his crew spent a couple of weeks just building a one-sixth-scale model for the client. “Those are the kind of measures that we go to to make the customer understand exactly what they are getting.”

With work such as these magnificent projects it is no surprise that Fetty has been noticed – and commissioned – by a number of noteworthy figures, including former President Bill Clinton, designer Yves St. Laurent, the Elizabethan Globe Theatre in London, author Tom Clancy, rocker Jon BonJovi and Professor Yupeng Pan, Fudan University, Shanghai, China, to name just a few. Fetty's next major project will be a piece of public sculpture for the city of Charlottesville, Virginia.

Between his work in the forge and his work as a photographer – Fetty has begun exhibiting his nature photographs, which often serve as inspiration for his metalwork – he travels extensively throughout the world to learn about the blacksmithing trade in other cultures. "I have really enjoyed taking a month off every year and traveling to Third World locations to seek out primitive blacksmith operations that are turning the clock back 200 years in time and seeing them producing simple but finely crafted hand-forged agriculture tools," Fetty said. "They are the true blacksmiths of the world, creating the tools to sustain their communities." From these journeys, Fetty gathers ideas and inspiration for his artistic pieces. In addition, he has been photographing and documenting blacksmith shops in Mexico, Egypt and Southeast Asia with the goal of putting them into book form.

Fetty's work is about to expand even further into the international marketplace. A major furniture company in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, has expressed an interest in Fetty's work, and he will be visiting the Vietnamese facilities later this year. Fetty learned of this opportunity through his interaction with MacKenzie-Dow, a furniture marketing company based in Lynchburg, Virginia. "We think they may be interested in having me design some pieces for them to develop a Fetty line," he said.

In addition to the Third World travels, Fetty has been making regular pilgrimages to blacksmith shops in Europe to visit the masters and tour existing operations. Last fall, Fetty and his assistant, Matt Thomas, attended and demonstrated at an international artist blacksmith conference in southern France called Ferronnerie d' Art.

"There are a lot more blacksmiths per capita in Europe than in this country," Fetty said, citing the European community's appreciation for the work as a driving force. "The people have a much broader understanding and greater appreciation of hand-forged steel, and as a result there are more blacksmiths. As far as contemporary blacksmithing is concerned, the European scene is really where it's at."

A console table (30"x 36" x 16") in forged steel with marble top was commissioned by the West Virginia Division of Culture & History.

Photography by Jim Osborn

The future holds a great deal of potential for Fetty's Leaning Oak Forge, but one of his biggest challenges as he looks toward what's next is  recruiting employees. He already employs two assistants and an office manager, but is looking for some additional help for the forge. “It is difficult to find people who want to participate in this line of work,” Fetty said. “I would hire more people if I could find someone who was interested. We don’t make a lot of money, and it's hard, hot, physically demanding work.”

This one-sixth-scale maquette of a staircase that Fetty is working on for a Charleston company is composed of forged steel with various patinas.

Photography by Gefeti

But for Fetty, the work has been highly rewarding, and he would like to find someone to not only assist him at the forge but also to learn the trade in order to carry on the tradition of hand-forged blacksmithing. "I am willing to take any young person who is interested and teach them everything I know," Fetty said. "It took me 30 years to learn what I know now, and I would like to bestow that knowledge on someone else in a much shorter amount of time." Despite the fact that he needs a few extra hands to keep up with all the orders, Fetty is balancing his art with his business goals extremely well. In fact, a major component of his success at Leaning Oak Forge is his business management skill. “I have enjoyed the success that I have, but I have treated the business like a business," Fetty said. "It is a tough balancing act. If it ever comes to the point where I'm not doing the hands-on myself, I will reevaluate the business." Fetty attributes part of his success to his office manager, Mark Bossert. "One of the best decisions I have made was taking on an office manager to handle business details," Fetty said. "Having him on board has really made me a more prolific artist and gives me more time to design and execute the pieces." Fetty has implemented a top-of-the-line Web site, www.jefffettyironwork.com, that takes visitors on a tour of the forge and offers insight into the inspiration that drives Fetty to create such beautifully sculpted pieces from cold, hard steel. The site, which was chosen as Yahoo.com's Favorite of the Week when it launched in March 2001, also showcases Fetty's complete product line, as well as examples of special commissions and projects. Even though blacksmithing is not the most glamorous occupation, Fetty is living his dream and is pleased to be doing it here in the Mountain State. "All I ever wanted out of my life, as far as my business life, was to be able to work at home and to be able to bend hot metal and make enough money to survive," Fetty said. "We are pulling off major commissions in the back woods of West Virginia, by word of mouth...by reputation." This reputation for high-quality, finely-sculpted work and his mastery of this centuries-old craft will no doubt carry Fetty and his Leaning Oak Forge well into the 21st century. Jeff Fetty's striking metal work is available in a number of galleries across the region and beyond, including Annex Gallery in Charleston, West Virginia; Nancy Marko in St. Petersburg, Florida; Designer's Gallery in San Diego, California; Mountain Artisans in Charleston, West Virginia; MountainMade.com Artisan Gallery in Thomas, West Virginia; The Mind's Eye in St. Michaels, Maryland and Tamarack in Beckley, West Virginia. His work is also available on the Web at www.jefffettyironwork.com and at www.mountainmade.com. You can also contact the Leaning Oak Forge via phone or e-mail to commission work at (304) 927-4338 or jfetty@jefffettyironwork.com.

Reprinted with permission from the Fall 2002 issue of West Virginia Executive.