Nathan Garfat – Metalsmith

Fire—one of the most powerful transformative forces in all of nature—is at the heart of Nathan Garfat’s work as an artist-blacksmith.

“I mostly work with the forge and the hammer and the anvil,” he says. “And I mostly use reclaimed metal—junk metal. I love taking what is considered to be garbage, getting it ridiculously hot—up to 2000 degrees, hitting it with a hammer, and then when I’m done it’s not garbage anymore.

“It’s hot, it’s loud, and it’s dirty. It’s a lot of destructive elements leading to a creative, productive, and even artistic thing–something beautiful, something that will last forever.”

Nathan creates full-time out of his hand-built workshop in the Denman Island forest. Most of his work is commissioned by private clients who are looking for unique, beautiful metal tools, decorative items, or household wares. His seemingly unlimited range includes utility knives, kitchen knives, hooks, dinner bells, jewelry, ornaments, bowls, spoons, candle holders, magic wands, athames, candle scribes, fireplace tools, garden tools, hinges, latches, hammers, and axes.

Nathan’s artistic process includes creative scavenging—walking the old E&N railway line, picking up old railway spikes that have worked themselves loose, rummaging through scrap metal dumpsters, taking apart abandoned vehicles.

Sometimes, locals let Nathan know about a derelict tractor or car abandoned in the woods. “I head out with my grinder and my saw. There’s some good steel. I like the patina of rust. I like the pitted textures,” he says.

See Nathan’s work on Denman Island: Contact Nathan to arrange a viewing and/or look for him at the Denman Christmas Craft Fair.