
3yrs full-time
£9,275 p.a.
W720
H18
Forge your future by joining a degree course at the forefront of education in forged metal arts, where creativity meets craftmanship.
100 %
In a recent NSS survey students were asked 'How well have teaching staff supported your learning?' and the BA(Hons) Artist Blacksmithing Course achieve 100% for this and many other questions. Leading to an overall score of 90.6.
Embark on a Creative Journey. Imagine starting your day forging at the National School of Blacksmithing, where your creativity comes to life. In the afternoon, dive into the cutting-edge world of design in our state-of-the-art digital skills centre. Here, you’ll unleash your imagination with tools like laser cutters, 3D printing, and 3D scanning, enabling you to visualize, iterate, and rapidly test your ideas before bringing them to life at the forge.
The next day, step into your dedicated design studio, where you’ll draw and innovate with a variety of materials. Experiment with clay, wood, glass, copper, and aluminium, testing your concepts and designs before returning to the forge. On another day, engage in stimulating lectures and seminars that sharpen your critical thinking skills through lively analysis, evaluation, and debate, all supported by our extensive Art & Design library.
You have your own studio space; where ideas are made real and lasting connections are made. Filling its walls compliments reflective book work, driving the design process forward; current thinking made visible through drawn and made tests. Studio culture is essential to the success of your design and make projects.
Book an Open DayThe National School of Blacksmithing boasts forty-two side blast coke forges where you are taught the fundamentals of blacksmithing. There are also propane forges for working longer sections with more consistent heat control. The Tutors at the National School of Blacksmithing bring over 150 collective years of forge experience.
Book an Open DayThe National School of Blacksmithing provides four power hammers, a 25-ton hydraulic press, four fly presses, a large bandsaw, a cropper and two laying out tables. In addition to top and bottom swages, fullers, flatters, set hammers and a wide range of tongs including a variety of power hammer tooling. You are also taught how to safely use angle grinders with various attachments, oxy-acetylene and oxy-propane gas torches.
Book an Open DayThe Welding department at the National School of Blacksmithing allows for a variety of techniques to be taught including TiG, MiG/MAG, ARC/Stick, Gas, and Brazing These processes are taught in structured lessons to expand your skills and understand selecting the correct process.
Book an Open DayThe Fabrication tools you have access to at the National School of Blacksmithing include sheet metal benders, rollers, and a scroll jenny. The department has a large CNC Laser cutter which can cut up to 12mm thick plate, a large and small cropper, vertical and horizontal bandsaws, a hand plasma cutter, and a die grinder.
Book an Open DayIn the Queens workshop, you can explore and experiment with various materials and processes in a well-equipped space. The facilities include small metals, wood, cold casting, 3D printing, and MDF/Plywood laser cutting, as well as welders and jewellers' benches. You can learn techniques such as woodturning, steam bending, resin and Jesmonite casting, various welding processes, 3D printing, vinyl, and veneering.
Book an Open DayThe Queens workshop is divided into four zones: Metals (jewellery, silversmithing, machining, welding, fabrication), Woodwork (steam bending, lamination, woodturning), Cold Casting (silicone mold making, jesmonite, resin), and Digital Fabrication (scanning, laser cutting, 3D printing).
Book an Open DayThe Small Metals workshop has fully equipped communal and individual workspaces to practice your bench skills. The workshop is equipped for a variety of specialist processes and has two larger silversmithing hearths. The walls are adorned with process samples for inspiration, and the space is overseen by highly skilled Technical Demonstrators.
Book an Open DayThe Ceramics and Glass workshop offers an opportunity to explore the tactile nature of clay and the artistry of glass cutting, fusing and slumping. You can develop skills in slab building, slip casting, and throwing, either for conceptual art or commercial projects. Technical demonstrators are available to guide you through all processes.
Book an Open DayOur textiles workshops provide an open and accessible space to explore print, dye, weave, knit, and mixed media surface design techniques. Focusing on sustainability and innovation, you’ll combine methods from across various disciplines, pushing your creative boundaries throughout your degree. The technical support, along with academic and industry guidance, encourages you to develop an original, innovative design practice.
Book an Open DayA dedicated art and design library carefully curated by knowledgeable librarians who will support you to access the materials in the collection. Includes books and magazines from a comprehensive selection of creative disciplines, critical & cultural theory and specialist journals. Plus, study spaces and IT provision. A college hub and key workshop area.
Book an Open DayDigital Design and Making is embedded into both curriculum and your practice. Offering the ability to test possibilities, accelerate iterations and resolve outcomes efficiently. The use of digital tools allows makers to visualise, prototype and refine project work across a range of materials and processes in additive and subtractive manufacturing.
Book an Open DayOpened in 2024 our Digital Skills Centre is an alternative space to the Graphic and Media Design Studios to craft your designs. Kitted out with new Macs and PCs, the area is staffed by Digital Demonstrators who also run weekly intro and How To classes on design software.
Book an Open DayOur photography studios and darkroom facilities offer extensive opportunities to gain hands-on experience with both digital and traditional techniques. You will acquire invaluable skills ensuring you take superb photos of your creative process and final outcomes. Work alongside professional photographers and technical specialists to get outstanding images of your work.
Book an Open DayHead of School of Materials and Design, BA(Hons) Artist Blacksmithing Course Leader & MA Contemporary Craft Course Leader
Lecturer - BA(Hons) Artist Blacksmithing
Lecturer - BA (Hons) Artist Blacksmithing
Lecturer - School of Materials and Design
Digital Design Lead
Lecturer - BA(Hons) Artist Blacksmithing
Lecturer - BA(Hons) Artist Blacksmithing
Lecturer - BA (Hons) Jewellery Design & Contemporary Design Crafts
Lecturer - BA(Hons) Artist Blacksmithing
Lecturer - BA(Hons) Artist Blacksmithing
BA(Hons) Artist Blacksmithing - Lecturer
Lecturer - BA(Hons) Textile Design
Lecturer - MA Contemporary Crafts & MA Forged Metal Arts
Designed to help you excel at Art School, this module covers essential skills like academic writing, note-taking, research, collaboration, IT basics, course structure, assessment, critical feedback, self-reflection, time management, independent learning, safety, relationships, consent, and sustainability in the creative sector.
This module introduces you to creativity through play and experimentation. You’ll engage with a variety of materials and processes, developing an inquisitive approach. Through drawing, making, rendering, and recording in sketchbooks and technical journals, you’ll explore “what if” scenarios and learn by doing.
Learn the fundamentals of forging, fabrication, and welding through professional demos and hands-on exercises. Document your progress in a technical journal, culminating in a design and make project showcasing your skills.
This module gives you an introduction to the broad landscape of making & historical cultural practices. Here you will learn to analyse artefacts through engaging with era, style, function, material and technique.
This is your first design and make module, where you’ll apply all the creative skills and methods you’ve learned. You’ll respond to a set brief, generate visual research, draw, design, test, make, explore, iterate, and create forged outcomes. Workshop sessions will help you initiate, reflect upon, and evaluate ideas, as well as test possibilities. This process emphasises that design and creativity are evidenced not just by the final outcomes but also by the journey taken.
Hereford Anvils is the student and graduate community that connects generations of artists blacksmiths associated with Hereford College of Arts. It has grown to become a powerful force within international blacksmithing and the UK's heritage craft community, using Instagram to share amazing work, and to unite and mobilise blacksmith through projects like the 150mm Challenge and Crosses for ukraine.
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The creative community around the course is outstanding. Being surrounded by like-minded creatives was key to developing my skills as a maker. It's opened up a world of opportunity for me going forward.
Nathan Forster
The Artist Blacksmithing degree course gave me much more than just skills training. It taught me to question everything, and to really look at the details. So now I am always asking myself: How can I make this simpler, or better? Most of all, it gave me three years to explore, without the pressure of business.
Sam Pearce
The Artist Blacksmithing degree allowed me to find what I’m really driven by and helped me lay out a direction in which I would like to progress as a maker. The course itself is more than just learning the craft of blacksmithing, it also covers a lot of critical thinking and translating that into an idea, and into a tangible design.
Sam Matthijs
The artist blacksmithing degree laid the groundwork for my creative process. The time spent discussing design, aesthetic and creative values with my fellow students gave me the self-assurance to confidently approach challenging design scenarios and to sell my work.
Toby Forbes Gower
Mature students: Applications from mature students with relevant experience will also be considered.
If you are unsure or have any questions, please contact us at registry@hca.ac.uk and we can offer further advice on HCA and the UWTSD awarding body requirements.
Your space to make pasta, make friends and make art in the heart of one of the UK’s happiest cities.
Chat to students. Tour the campus. Drop in on some free workshops. Our Open Days are a great way to get a feel for what makes HCA special.
Everything you need to know about applying to HCA - and starting the next stage of your journey as an artist
Get a glimpse of our students' creativity in action. Explore an evolving archive of images and videos showcasing their work in progress and projects seeing the talent and innovation happening across the college right now.
All undergraduate degrees at HCA are validated by University of Wales Trinity St David.
Term | Enrolment |
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Dates (2024 - 2025) | Monday 23rd September 2024 – Friday 27th September 2024 |
Term | Semester 1 |
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Dates (2024 - 2025) | Monday 30th September 2024 – Friday 13th December 2024, Tuesday 7th January 2025 – Friday 31st January 2025, Monday 3rd February 2025 – Friday 7th February 2025 (Research Week) |
Term | Semester 2 |
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Dates (2024 - 2025) | Monday 10th February 2025 – Friday 11th April 2025, Monday 28th April 2024 – Friday 13th June 2025 |
Everything you need to know about applying to HCA - and starting the next stage of your journey as an artist
Find out moreChat to students. Tour the campus. Drop in on some free workshops. Our Open Days are a great way to get a feel for what makes HCA special.
Book now