Tool making has always been a passion of mine as a designer. Combined with a rigorous process-oriented approach to design, experimenting with crude tools can be an excellent way to experiment with form. 

This project was an exploration of molten metal forms. I created this zinc forge using a charcoal chimney, a hairdryer, a cast iron soup bowl, and a blowtorch. 

After some experimentation of casting into plaster molds, I noticed that if the plaster was not completely cured and dry, the molten zinc would actually boil the residual water in the paster and leave behind a bubbling effect as the metal cooed. I set up a flat, circular piece of wet plaster with three steel legs protruding from it. Once poured, the zinc bubbled and cooled into an otherwordly cratered surface while adhering to the steel legs to create a stool.