Amanda Brunete de Pablos

DESCRIPTION OF THE WORKA

Amanda Brunete is a master blacksmith. In her workshop she carries out works of reproduction, interpretation and restoration of the Historical and Cultural Heritage. She has a vast experience working directly with official entities as well as with other restoration businesses. 

The processes and techniques she carries out are the following:

• She evaluates and carries out a diagnose of the object, revising the rivets, collars, and the unions of the wrought iron grilles to the ground or the wall.
• Cleaning and substitution of broken or non-existent pieces, whether it is on-site, with the portable forge or at the workshop.
• Manufacture of rivets and assembly of them using the dolly tool.
• For the restoration of cresting she carries out a combination of techniques under the name of batido, consisting of altering the shape of the sheet of iron with a hammer.
• Reproduction of flowers, lead macollas with red silicon moulds. 

The tools she uses are those which can be found in any blacksmith’s forge: hammers, punchers, compasses, mezzalunas, files, forks, pressure jacks, etc. She also uses electrical tools such as: radial saws, drills, compressors, folding machines, shears, etc. These utensils are used as a way to improve the traditional methods, since one is able to cut, punch and grind the material in a reasonable amount of time. However, these are not used for restoration processes, where she still sticks to strictly following the traditional processes. 

For Amanda, it is important to have respect for the pieces that one is working on as well as respect for the blacksmiths who manufactured them in the first place.