Desert Metal Craft is the only school in the Southwest dedicated to teaching the ancient art of blacksmithing together with the modern science behind the craft of metalworking.
Courses are designed for all age and skill levels, and taught by a team of experienced blacksmiths, metal workers, artists and metallurgists drawn from the Tucson community. Guest instructors are brought in from across the United States and from around the world. The level of expertise and craft mastery available to students is unparalleled.
DMC Staff
Liz Cameron
Liz earned her Master of Science in materials science and engineering at the University of Arizona after spending two years working in the steel industry and blacksmithing in northern Florida. She has a passion for education, science and ancient crafts, and teaches applied metallurgy at Pima Community College in Tucson, Arizona. She conducts metallurgical research at the University of Arizona to continually broaden her metallurgical understanding, which she loves to share. The formation of Desert Metal Craft is an expression of her desire to continue learning and to pass on her knowledge about ancient crafts in the metallurgical world.
• Email Liz at liz@desertmetalcraft.org
Rich Greenwood
Rich was a contestant on the premiere episode of the History Channel’s “Forged in Fire” series in 2015, which prompted Pima Community College in Tucson, Arizona, to invite him to teach a course on bladesmithing and blacksmithing. He established Pokabu Forge in 2016 and is a professional bladesmith with customers across the United States. Teaching the ancient art of blacksmithing inspired him to establish Desert Metal Craft. He is a strong believer in the hands-on method of learning and teaching, from which he derives his motto: “I never make a mistake – I either succeed or learn.”
• Email Rich at rich@desertmetalcraft.org or call him at 520.272.4328
Pete Brown
As a lad growing up in the English countryside, Pete always wanted to be a blacksmith, but got sidetracked into a career in publishing. He’s been a science journalist and an engineering technical writer, and spent a decade as communications director for the College of Engineering at the University of Arizona in Tucson. He studied knife making and blacksmithing in Rich Greenwood’s class and applied metallurgy in Liz Cameron’s class, both of which inspired him to become a blacksmith while handling the media, marketing and communications at Desert Metal Craft.
• Retired