About Us Lee W. Badger
Lee W. Badger is an artist-blacksmith sculptor, furniture maker, and designer-craftsman in metals; and the owner and director of Anvil Works® metal studio. His life-long career as a self-employed artist-blacksmith began during the 1970's in Denver and the Colorado Rockies. Lee was among the first wave of apprentices trained by masters of the Mid-Century American craft revival who defined themselves as “artist-blacksmiths,” including Ivan Bailey, Slim Spurling, Alex Weygers, and Francis Whitaker. After taking part in the First International Festival of Iron in Cardiff, Wales, Lee taught and worked as an artist-in-residence in cooperation with the National Park Service at Glen Echo Park in suburban Washington, DC from 1989 to 1993. As the scope of his business increased, he began to seek a regionally central location where he could create a workshop of his own design.
In 1998 he built the Anvil Works metal studio and expanded it in 2005. Additional specialized equipment was acquired in 2008 and again in 2014 with financial assistance from the West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture & History and the National Endowment for the Arts. He has also recieved recognition from the WV Small Business Development Corporation.
As a sculptor and furniture maker, he is a past member of the International Sculpture Center and The Furniture Society. Currently he creates interior and architectural metal designs and artist-blacksmith sculpture which he exhibits widely in rotating public art programs. He belongs to national, regional and local blacksmith guilds and associations, and attends metalsmithing workshops and conferences wherever his interests may lead.