Instructors & Staff

Mary Jane’s fascination with metal began in a small fabrication shop on San Juan Island off the coast of Washington state.   There, she gained a solid foundation in a wide variety of metal working skills, from repairing an Oscar statue to building a concrete silo and outfitting fishing vessels.

Her interest in traditional blacksmithing flourished under the tutelage of Brian Brazeal while working at the Mission San Juan Capistrano for a year.   Over the course of the next two decades, she lived in the west of Ireland, creating sculpture and functional pieces in the Glen Forge.  While there, she also joined Umha Aois, an annual symposium of bronze age enthusiasts whose work in experimental archeology has advanced knowledge in that field over the course of more than 20 years.

Alongside her career as an artist blacksmith, she’s also developed more administrative and analytical interests, holding positions as a real estate appraiser, human resources expert, property manager, chair of a non-profit artists’ co-operative and manager of a fine art gallery.

Working as Executive Director at Adam’s Forge fulfills her ambition to be of service in a creative and dynamic environment.

Amanda Kazarian, one of our most dedicated instructors, grew up in the San Gabriel Valley of Southern California. She attended the Art Institute of Orange County and graduated with a bachelor’s of science in interior design.

After graduation she assisted in set design and construction for AFI and USC student film and thesis projects and began working in entertainment. Prop fabrication and scenic art were skills she obtained while working for various theme parks, stage shows, and independent fabrication shops.

She began attending Adams Forge and attended courses there for several years. Simultaneously, she attended silversmithing and jewelry making classics at UCLA extension. It was during her time learning about metals that she developed a passion for working with it as a medium for her art and design.

Her knowledge of design, fabrication, and art are incorporated into her work. With nature and organic form, she hopes provide lasting inspiration to her clients through her pieces.

I started blacksmithing in 1995 while volunteering to restore the Santa Susanna Railroad Depot. They needed custom brackets for tool displays and I was able to forge them.  I have also recreated historical items for Strathern Park, Reyes Adobe, and the Leonis Adobe Museum.

Now, I regularly demonstrate blacksmithing at the Chatsworth Historical Society and the Los Encinos State Historical Park. I also teach blacksmithing at the Stagecoach Inn Museum and the Adam Leventhal Memorial Blacksmithing School and Museum (Adam’s Forge).  Teaching at Adam’s Forge since 2004, I created our interpretation of the California Blacksmith Association Level 1 and 2 programs and continue to teach the Level 2 classes.  I also teach knife making and about a dozen other classes ranging from Skull Necklaces for Halloween to Horse Shoe Hearts for Valentine’s Day.

The excitement I see in the audience and students when I show and teach the art of blacksmithing is inspiring. To create art from red hot metal seems impossible, but once they see it can be done, they want to explore their ability and express their artistic nature.

I have been blacksmithing and metalworking since 1993, but found it difficult to improve my skills from books without a teacher. In 2012, I found Adam’s forge, and it was just what I needed. I was able to grow quickly, becoming an instructor at the forge a few years later.

I’ve brought some new classes to our programs, and enjoy continuing to learn and teach. It’s a pleasure to see the students take a piece of raw steel and shape it with fire and hammer into something beautiful, useful, or both.

Age 79.