Colin the Cockerel & one man's journey from office worker to Artist Blacksmith!
After 30 years of office life and 3 redundancies in 5 years, Mike Dunbill decided it was time for change. It was while watching a Blacksmith at work at a college metalwork class that Mike discovered his vocation. Mike heard about the Rural Apprenticeship & New Entrants Training Scheme at HCT and started on the course in August 2005.
During Mike’s first week of residential tuition at the specialist Rural Crafts Centre, based at the Holme Lacy Campus, Course Tutor, Chris Blythman wasted no time in teaching and perfecting techniques.
“It was wonderful to be there” commented Mike, “but at the same time it was disheartening to find out how little I actually knew, but by the end of my first week I had made a selection of tools”.
“It was during my second residential week that I met my main Course Tutor, Paul Allen. We had a general chat about the projects to be undertaken and got to know each other a bit. It was a wonderful experience to watch Paul demonstrating – he made it look so easy and has a real talent and passion for blacksmithing”.
Mike’s inspiration for his copper cockerel Weathervane came from a cockerel made by a Frenchman circa 1700 / 1725 and displayed in the Victoria and Albert Museum. Initially, builders foam was used and shaped to make the cockerels’ body shape. Mike then took templates and made a skeleton from a donated copper fireplace canopy. Next came the 2mm skin made from donated copper sheet, which was shaped to the skeleton. Each leg, complete with foot was forged from iron – a sample of pure iron that was given to him years previously but which he knew would come in useful one day! The stem on which the vane will pivot is made from 20mm bright steel. This was fitted and the legs were attached to the skeleton before the skin could be finished.
The cockerel’s head and neck feathers were made in two halves using the 2mm copper sheet then silver soldered together. It was at this point that the cockerel seemed to gain a bit of an attitude and was christened Colin! The skin was then covered with individual hand made feathers – made from second hand water tanks sourced from friends and the local scrap yard. Mike added “After several attempts to count the feathers, all I can really say is that there are definitely more than 400”.
Mike is taking the cockerel weather vane a step further by creating a decorative carousel that will be fitted further down the pivot pole. This will display which way the wind is blowing from inside his barn!
“I have thoroughly enjoyed my time on the course. The tutors are professional craftsmen with passion and enthusiasm for blacksmithing. It is contagious and quickly passed onto students! There is no cure if you get this bug! Prior to this course, there is no way I would have undertaken such a project as Colin the Cockerel. With Paul’s tuition, knowledge, advice and encouragement I have achieved what I thought was previously impossible for me. Paul makes you believe in yourself and my sincere thanks go to him for everything. Truly magical things come out of the Rural Crafts Centre, but they don’t happen by themselves, the tutors make them happen!”
