IRON NOTES
During the 2026-2026 school year, the Metal and Art Jewellery subject area will work with focus on our collaborative project with other Universities in Scandinavia and Italy, subsidized by the European Union.
This project will be of great relevance for our students and the artistic community in Oslo, it will consist of a series of events such as exhibitions, seminar, round tables and workshops in April 2026, with KHIO and some galleries in the city center as the venue (spaces to be confirmed).
This project will receive an audience and visitors from local and different parts of Europe, creating an international projection in the city of Oslo.
Project summary general:
At the Borders of Iron (Iron Notes) is a series of events and a network that gather together professionals, makers, students and broader audiences around the common theme of metal.
With a strong background in metalworks and blacksmithing this network brings together artists, creators, designers, producers and educators from five different countries with different kinds of events to broaden the view of the use of metal in the society today Estonia, Finland, Italy, Norway, Sweden.
This consortium seeks to find ways to strengthen the awareness of blacksmithing tradition, its possibilities to enhance regionality and co-operation between several countries.
With different types of events the aim is to open the role of metal also to broader audiences with themes that link people with this special material culture.
There are six partners in this consortium: four different universities, one blacksmithing biennial and one blacksmith company. In the project, every partner has their own network within the arts and crafts and metal fields. During the project years, every partner will be either hosting or taking part in different types of events around the project theme, all together six different types of events.
Keywords:
Art in public spaces, Tangible cultural heritage, Craftwork, blacksmithing, art, sculpture, Jewellery, exhibition, networking
Project summary Metal and Art Jewellery Subject Area:
IRON NOTES event will take place at KHIO as the main venue on April 14th 15th 16th. 2025.
This event will focus on objects, korpus, jewelry, and medium-scale sculptures.
The curatorial process for both the symposium and the exhibitions is being led and curated by Jorge Manilla.
Each invited artist will be selected based on their professional experience, technical skills, and creative response to diverse subjects, and their respective works will be representative of one of the main themes of this event, which aims to provide the audience with a complete overview of the development of contemporary blacksmithing in Scandinavia.
Some of the topics we will speak, exhibit, and discuss are:
Memory, History, and Traditions; Sense of Inventiveness with materials; and Sources of Inspiration.
Jorge Manilla will contact each artist individually to discuss the selection of their work and the topics of the symposium.
Theme: Objects and Art Jewellery
We live in a time where objects are in constant revaluation. What are the objects in our lives today? How do we define and categorize them? What are they for? In our human needs, we cannot live without defined objects, from ornaments to practical approaches as tools. The thought of how objects are defined and perceived is a common thread in our academic program in the Metal and Art Jewelry Subject Area education at the Oslo National Academy of the Arts.
During this event, we will be actively formulating questions and materializing the answers through different activities; as a result, we will try to create new proposals to express metaphorical definitions of our objects.
Questioning ourselves about formats, shapes, utility, and physical and philosophical aspects in this project will propose critical and extensive thought about offering and
repeatedly challenging the elements, we need to define something as an object.
Activities:
Oslo National Academy of the Arts (KHIO) will feature:
-Three exhibitions : Gallerie Seilduken 1, Theory room or Reception Gallery, Katedralen.
Showing works from, Iron notes project members, students, invited artists and special guest’s artists.
-A Symposium with 6 to 8 lectures, and one discussion forum will find place at the auditorium the 15 and 16th April from 10:00 – 16:00
-During those days different guided tours and four short workshops will be leaded by professional artists during the event in different locations of the campus.
-An experimental music performance by some students will take place at the Kathedral Gallery on the last day of the symposium. (To be confirmed)
-Renowned artists in this field, Iron Notes Project leaders, alumni, students and teachers will be invited.
Symposium
Each invited artist will be selected based on their professional experience, technical skills, and creative response to diverse subjects, and their respective works will be representative of one of the main themes of this event, which aims to provide the audience with a complete overview of the development of contemporary blacksmithing in Scandinavia.
Some of the topics we will speak, exhibit, and discuss are:
Memory, History, and Tradition; Sense of Inventiveness with materials; and Sources of Inspiration.
Exhibitions
Iron notes at Oslo National Academy of the Arts (KHIO) will feature 3 exhibitions:
Iron Notes exhibitions, present approximately 100 pieces in three exhibition spaces at the Oslo National Academy of the Arts.
These pieces were created by metal artists and students.
The curatorial approach of this exhibition attempts to showcase a refreshing take on the metal field from the classic to the actual, we focus on the use of iron and exploring the mastery, creativity, and resourcefulness of invited artists, primarily from Scandinavia.
Venue and duration
Those exhibitions will be on display during the iron notes event, April 13 to 17, 2025
In 3 galleries from KHIO
Gallerie Seilduken 1
Students and Invited artists and special guest’s artists.
Theory room or Reception Gallery
Iron notes project members
Katedralen
Alumni
Workshops
During this event we will offer 3 workshops (To be defined)
Drawing in steel- leaded by Metal Artist Antti Nieminen
Forging to the limits – To be defined
Casting small scale objects – To be Defined
This Project is leaded and curated by
Professor Jorge Manilla Navarrete
jorgnava@khio.no
0032476204286
Past events
Planning and preparations start – January 2025
Kick-off meeting for partners in Stia, Italy – March 2025
Blacksmithing in education today – Lappeenranta 2025, June
Blacksmithing with Tourism today – Event in Italy, Stia – September 2025
Blacksmithing in Sepulchral Space today – Event in Sweden – October 2025- September 2026
Coming events
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Blacksmithing in Jewellery & Objects today- Event in Norway – spring 2026
Blacksmithing in Public Space today – Event in Estonia, Narva, October 2026
Assessment – June 2026
Travelling exhibition on show, various locations 2026-2027
Project ending by July 2027
Duration: January 2025 – June 2027
https://www.instagram.com/iron_notes/
https://metalartsweden.com/research/grave-marker/conference-2025.html
https://www.youtube.com/@IronNotes
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