9th Biennial Western Cast Iron Art Conference — Slag Circus

Mark your calendars, registration for the 9th Biennial Western Cast Iron Art Conference is officially open! This year’s event, themed Slag Circus, will be held September 30 – October 4, 2026 at The Skillet & Highlands University in Las Vegas, New Mexico.

Every two years, the Western Cast Iron Art Alliance brings together artists, students, educators, and professionals from across the western United States for a week of casting iron, sculptural work, and performance art with metal. Whether you’re a seasoned pourer or brand new to the foundry, there’s a place for you at the anvil, the mold table, and the iron carnival.

Registration Costs

Early admission pricing is available through September 25th at 5:00 PM:

• Professional / Amateur / Artist / Educator Admission — $193.64 (incl. $8.64 fee)
• Student Admission — $141.79 (incl. $6.79 fee)

After September 25th, onsite registration will be available for $200 (Professional/Amateur/Artist/Educator) and $160 (Student). Space is limited, so early registration is strongly encouraged.

Workshops

This year’s conference features hands-on workshops for all skill levels, including:

• Forging Sand Mold Slicks — Learn to forge your own slicks, the essential hand tools used to smooth and shape sand molds. Participants work at the forge to hammer, draw out, and finish a functional slick from raw steel, leaving with their own hand-forged tool.
• Reaction Mold Workshop: Thunder Boxes — Build simple yet effective reaction molds, focusing on “thunder boxes,” multi-layered plywood or OSB boxes filled with consumable materials that produce dramatic fireball effects when poured. Molds will be poured live during the conference’s performance pour.

Ready to Register?

Don’t miss your chance to join fellow iron artists for a week of fire, forging, and community in Las Vegas, NM. Register now before early admission pricing ends on September 25th.