Tolkien Inspired Swordsmiths Reveal Thor Movie Deal

A big round of applause is due for Andy Davis and David DelaGardelle, owners of Mad Dwarf Workshop. Their swordsmithing talent caught Hollywood’s eye back in November 2009 when they were asked by Thor’s production team (Marvel) to take on the task of creating Heimdall’s sword. Without hesitation they jumped on board but were under strict instructions to keep the project a secret.

Two years later in Feburary 2011, Mad Dwarf Workshop became the first Q&A middleearthnews conducted, posting the interview in two parts (One and Two). It was in part two they revealed their involvement with Marvel and that a movie deal was in the works, but all we could be told was Kenneth Branagh’s (Director of Thor) name had something to do with it. It’s been three months, and the premiere of Thor is here and their secret is out! The finished sword is 5 ½ feet in length with intricate carvings along the hilt. A masterpiece fit for an all-seeing and all-hearing guardian sentry of Asgard. Well done, guys!

You can view pictures of conceptual designs, the forging of the sword, and the finished project here.

Tolkien Fans Rally For Japan

We’ve all been watching despairingly as the situations in New Zealand and Japan continue to play out. And now, Mad Dwarf Workshop and Dunedain Radio have announced their involvement with charities, giving us a chance to contribute to the relief efforts in these regions.

Source: Mad Dwarf Workshop

MDW with be auctioning off their exquisite Folkvrärthr sword, with 100% of the proceeds going to Samaritan's Purse for helping to rebuild Japan, New Zealand, and Haiti as well. The sword itself was forged from 1095 and 8670 pattern welded steel made by Rick Barrett of Barrett Custom Knives. Grinding, heat treating, and shaping as well as the antler carving was accomplished by David DelaGardelle , while the copper guard fitting was done by Andy Davis. The deer antler was donated by Shad Peters, a professional guitar building luthier and friend of MDW.

If you wish to bid, the auction begins this Saturday, March 19th at 7:00 pm EDT and will end on Saturday March 26th at 7:00 PM EDT. MDW asks that the starting minimum bid be $500 USD. Send bids to: MDWauction@gmail.com, with subject line the price of you bid and the content to include the price and your name. Updates on the current bidding status will be posted on Facebook and Twitter every day at 7:00 PM EDT and each individual bidder via email every night so that they know the current standing.

Source: Dunedain Radio

Dunedain Radio is also doing their part for those in need. With only 9 days left until the Tolkien-related station goes live, they have teamed up with artist Daniel Govar to create the “Map of the Dwarfs”. From now until April 15th, this uniquely crafted work of art is a gift to those who donate from $20 and $26 with 10% going to Hands on Tokyo.  The Japanese based charity aids communities in Japan and because they are local to the affected area, their efforts will continue long after many relief agencies leave. Your donation will also support Dunedain’s efforts to continue to buy music and bring you outstanding programs.

Sources: Mad Dwarf Workshop, Dunedain Radio

All images are copyright and used with permission.

EXCLUSIVE Q&A with Mad Dwarf Workshop -Part 2

In the second part of my Q&A with Mad Dwarf Workshop, Andy Davis and David DelaGardelle divulge their plans for their future and reveal the answer to the question we all want to know: are there any big budget movie contracts in the works for MDW?

1. David: out of all the books you read growing up, which world was your favorite?

Tolkien without a doubt has impacted me the most artistically and aesthetically; Lewis definitely the most emotionally and philosophically; Chesterton the most historically and intellectually; but the world Bunyan portrayed in his book “Pilgrim’s Progress” has absolutely impacted me the most in my day-to-day life and worldview. Now to be fair and honest, it may not be the world’s most original book artistically or metaphorically (Tolkien & Lewis themselves had their hesitations about such methods of storytelling). But I don’t care who you are or what your worldview is, there are objective unchanging moral truths in that book that Bunyan shows which you simply cannot deny… especially when you are approaching it as an artist. It hit home for me personally as one who is trying to grow up and maintain my identity in this superficial brainwashing culture. Society is relentlessly trying to bombard individuals with its self centered rhetoric. That story offered a radical idea about going against the grain of what culture considers popular and acceptable. “Pilgrim's Progress” also defines the concept that an individual should only care about how he is viewed in the eyes of his Creator. The main Character, Christian the Pilgrim, goes off on his quest against the will of everyone around him just to reach his goal. 

To me that idea is a powerful message, and I think one that is extremely relevant to our time. It’s also a story that is so old that it’s unfortunately been repeatedly butchered by countless artists who didn’t put enough time and effort into their work. As a result, modern people get a quick taste of the story from this bad art and immediately disregard it before even digging into it for themselves. So as an artist, this makes me all the more motivated to work hard and maybe some day respectfully portray this story in visual terms, either in the form of illustration, or maybe even working on a production bringing it to the silver screen, but do it RIGHT this time. Right now, I am obviously just hoping and dreaming, but it’s a timeless story that deserves good art and which more people need to experience for what it is.

2. Andy: what was your favorite piece of ancient weaponry you got to handle while working at Ball State Museum?

Working at the museum gave me an amazing look into historical weaponry and art. The museum housed very few weapons, although the few they have are very good examples of weapons from their respective periods. The most fascinating to me was going through a very large collection of Japanese sword handle components that has thus far, been undocumented. There are 6 shoebox sized museum storage bins full of hand crafted 300+ year old sword handle pieces. It was really fun to bring in one of our friends, who is a very renowned Japanese sword maker, and have him work with me on documenting them. There is also a 9th century Chinese cast bronze sword that is one of my favorites. I would love to do a reproduction of it some day. The blade is so thin and precise it boggles my mind how they managed to cast it without the use of modern technology.

3. Are you planning on expanding your creations to include bows and such?

At the moment we do not have any have plans to craft bows, but you never know! Our mindset is that wherever the good Lord leads us artistically we plan to pursue it with passion and energy. We don’t merely want to master more trades and crafts for our own selfish glory and gain. Instead we want to do work that other people can enjoy and benefit from, both practically and aesthetically. We also never like to limit ourselves on where our work can and should go. Swords are definitely one of our main passions because of our love for epic myths, nature, and our Northern ancestry. Swordsmithing also is one of our main creative focuses because it serves as such an amazing medium to do the things we want to do and say what we want to say. However we are constantly brainstorming what other mediums we can branch into. Right now, we’re working on multiple commissions which involve crafting ornate helmets, spears, axes, shields and even mugs. 

Andy is currently studying advanced pattern welding and mosaic steel techniques, bronze casting and carpentry skills in his last year at art school. And I (David) am also working as a graphic designer and illustrator in addition to bladesmithing. I’m studying traditional bookbinding, leather working, and doing digital art for book, magazine, and CD covers. So as we get better and continue to learn all of these other crafts (while they’re very different from swordsmithing) will most definitely be featured through the Mad Dwarf Workshop very soon. So keep an eye out!

4. Have you ever been contacted by a studio to work on a film? If so, which one? If not, would you if you were offered?

We’ve been keeping it a secret for almost a year now… But yes we have. Last November, we were contacted by a well known props team in Hollywood working on a big budget film. And they were in need of some Swordsmith’s who could craft multiple copies of a very intricate and very prominent hero sword for this movie. We took on the task to the best of our abilities, finished the swords, the movie has since filmed, wrapped, and is set for a spring release date in the USA and across the globe…

Unfortunately, we’re legally not yet allowed to share what film this is until it is released. However, we can definitely hint at it! And for that we’ll simply give you a name: Kenneth Branagh.

5. What are your goals for MDW and where do you see yourselves in 10 years?

In one sense, when we’re working in a craft like this we can only worry about today and the blessings that have been given to us in the moment. And it may sound weird, but we simply hope for MDW to be wherever God wants it to be in the future, because whether that means growing and moving forward onto great things, or if it means loosing everything and ending our work in a heartbeat, both routes are good if its in His Sovereign plan. Within that mindset though, our hopes and goals with the work we are doing are obviously optimistic. Andy has always loved sharing his passions with others. Andy has felt convicted to begin sharing the little knowledge we’ve already gained about this craft with people any way he can as an educator. By teaching, he would continue to learn more of the craft by sharing it with others. That opportunity may take shape in the form of teaching simple classes, or possibly getting connected with a traditional craft’s school somewhere down the road? With my (David’s) work I simply hope to continue to learn how to be a better artist and never stop learning. I want to continually push my abilities to wake up people’s senses to those eternal unchanging truths that men like Tolkien, Lewis, Chesterton and Bunyan were so good at doing. Granted however, they all used language, while my hope is to inspire and motivate people with my visual and physical art. Whether it is in the form of a finely crafted sword, or any other medium I can get my hands on. 

We could work our fingers to the bone & try to become world renown bladesmiths and artists, but at the end of the day if we are not loving people, connecting with them on a down to earth level, and not doing this for the good of others, then we are wasting our time and ultimately wasting our lives. Swords, knives and all these forms of art are definitely cool. But G.K. Chesterton once famously said “The dignity of the artist lies in his duty of keeping awake the sense of wonder in the world." We most definitely believe he was right! And if we’re not doing that then there is no sense in doing this at all. We just hope that through our work people feel that sense of wonder and mystery and see the same things we see through the amazing medium of this ancient craft.

This ends the Q&A, however if you just can’t get enough, you can follow MDW on Twitter and Facebook.

All images where used with permission from MDW.

EXCLUSIVE Q&A with Mad Dwarf Workshop -Part 1

The moment I first came across Mad Dwarf Workshop, I was immediately impressed. The two masterminds behind the Indiana based swordsmithing shop, Andy Davis and David DelaGardelle, put their amazing talents together to create some of the most exquisite creations I've ever seen. From daggers to swords, each one is intricately and lovingly designed by hand. Looking at their site was like stepping into the lands of Middle-earth and I found myself wanting to know more about the two men who pound away at metal all day. Here begins the first part of my Q&A with Mad Dwarf Workshop (MDW):

1. You mention on your site that the two of you became friends at an early age - when was it you both realized you had a passion for swordsmithing and joined interests to create MDW?

Andy Davis

Andy and I were blessed to have met at such an early age and to have had a great environment to hang out and to grow up in. We were also extremely blessed to have such awesome families who’ve always supported us in our weird creative endeavors ever since we were little kids. So right from the get-go when we first started hanging out we almost instantaneously became brothers. The glue that most definitely bound our friendship together from the start was our shared crazy creativity. We both had the freedom of being home schooled. Our learning environment gave us opportunities and confidence to explore who we wanted to become at a level most young kids unfortunately are not able to explore. We’ve been extremely blessed in that sense, and definitely do not take it for granted. It really all began with hours and hours spent building ridiculous creations out of Legos around age 7-8. We then moved into basic woodworking. We would make our own toy guns and swords; then we would proceed to beat the crap out of each other with the wooden weapons. Countless afternoons were spent digging trenches on Andy’s parents’ farm where we pretended we were soldiers in WWII. The landscapes we grew up in helped cultivate a passion and love for the natural world, especially when going on trips to the mountains of Colorado, Canada, and even England in our high school years. And finally, diving into the world of classic authors like Tolkien, Lewis, and completely eating up classic myths and legends like “Beowulf” really propelled our interest in Arms and Armor. It was right around 2000, a year before the first LOTR film came out (which we were a little critical of even at that age) when we first really started playing around with the idea of learning blacksmithing and blade making just for fun. Little did we know it would spiral us into an incredible world of craftsmanship and history, learning from some of the most amazing smiths alive.

David DelaGardelle

The sword had always been an intrinsic love for us for as long as we could remember. And I think that may be the similar case with most boys, because lets face it, boys are boys and they dream of saving the damsel and slaying the dragon. The moment we realized we might actually be able to get our hands dirty and try this craft for ourselves was a revelation. After years of researching, hunting down tools, and learning the basics; we officially started what we jokingly called “the Mad Dwarf Workshop”. And it wasn’t started with any huge goals in mind. We were still in high school at this point, and were literally only interested in crafting cool bladed weapons for ourselves to keep. Once we started to share our work with others, however, the positive and encouraging response from people was overwhelming. We figured why not try and refine our skills to the point of actually selling our creations? MDW took on a life of its own very quickly. We almost feel like we were merely the instruments, not the creators.

2. What is the story behind the name, MDW?

We really wish we had some cool epic story behind the name… But we don’t. :)

It literally spawned out of the minds of a couple Mythology loving overly ambitious artistic high school kids who’ve read the Hobbit one to many times. What we can remember though is a couple conversations we had about “MAD” referring to “Metalworking by Andy & David”. It also gained a second meaning when our good high school buddy named Mason occasionally joined us in the shop. But as of today; the name Mad Dwarf Workshop simply stands as a wild idea that a bunch of young kids thought up after being inspired by guys like Tolkien, Lewis, and the stories we’ve loved growing up.

3. What is your favorite part of the swordsmithing process?

Andy: My passion has always just been working with hot steel and letting the material dictate organically what the finished piece should look like. I really love the task of forge welding (fusing metals together) and creating natural looking patterns within the steel itself. The forging and manipulation of the steel when we craft some of our swords is always what gets me excited with a new project. On top of that, however, there is a whole different drive behind the work for me.   While I really enjoy making swords for customers, David is much better at it, and my true passion lies in the teaching of our craft to other people. It’s great to make a custom sword for an individual and get my work into their hands. But in many ways I personally feel it’s almost more rewarding to teach that person the craft, and then witness them use their own hands and own abilities to bring their dream to life.

David: For me it’s definitely the moment in which the materials I’m working with suddenly transform from simply being wood, steel, leather, or bronze into a real functional sword that seems to almost be alive. On every sword, it seems that point occurs at different times. Sometimes it happens right when I heat-treat the blade, which makes it tough enough to withstand combat. Sometimes it is when I am grinding the blade’s geometry to shape, and it suddenly begins to sing differently when struck against another object. And sometimes it doesn’t truly come to life until the hilt is fully assembled state and I can feel what some describe as the swords energy really come to life in my hand. Regardless of when it happens, it’s always an extremely satisfying and rewarding feeling as a smith and as an artist.

4. If you could design any weapon from one of Tolkien’s many made-up nations, what would it be and why?

Andy: I’ve always loved Tolkien’s description of Turin Turambar’s black sword “Anglachel” which later became “Gurthang”. Even if your slightly familiar with Northern myths and legends which spoke of weapons almost as people, its still striking to read Tolkien’s description of the black sword in such evocative detail. It literally is a character in the story, and is so much more than just an instrument of violence used by this flawed character. I think a few swordsmiths have attempted to bring this sword to life in their own way. But I think it would take a lot of time, craftsmanship, and passion to truly bring out the real spirit of this sword and have it do justice to Tolkien’s story. Plus, I love a good challenge! So maybe some day it will happen.

Source: MDW

David: For a long time I’ve dreamt about bringing Farmer Giles of Ham’s sword “Caudimordax” aka “Tail Biter” to life. I have always loved The Hobbit, LOTR, the Silmarillion, and Tolkien’s other Middle Earth tales. But something about Farmer Giles of Ham always resonated with me, both in a comical sense of the story, and in a serious sense of its narrative. I’ve always found it one of Tolkien’s best yet most under rated and overlooked stories. It’s a hilarious story that also provides some awesome subject matter for weird on the fringe artists like me. And how cool a name is “Caudimordax”!? I drew an elaborate sketch last year of Farmer Giles, showing multiple variations of his sword. [On right.]

5. While smithing away, is there any music you find that most inspires you?

The list of music that we love listening to while forging could fill an entire book, so we’ll try to sum it down to our absolute favorite musicians and bands. Probably the 1# band we listen to on our shop is a band called Flatfoot 56. They are great guys from Chicago who we’ve actually met in person and have been really encouraging to us in the work we do. Their music is an awesome mix of Irish/Celtic & Punk Rock. It fits the old world vibe of our shop while still being loud enough to keep us moving during a long day of working.

We also love a lot of traditional Irish, Celtic and even bluegrass tunes. It is the kind of music that you might expect to hear in a blacksmithing workshop. Some of our favorite artists in general include: Lunasa, the Chieftains, the Crossing,and Darol Anger’s Republic of Strings.

We also really love a lot of “percussion” Acoustic guitar musicians such as:

Michael Hedges, Phil Keaggy, Josh Garrels, Trace Bundy, and Preston Reed

TO BE CONTINUED...

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