Hephaestus’s Hearth: Modern Art in the Making

Hephaestus’s Hearth: Modern Art in the Making

16 May 2026Gladstone SH, Ellis '26

Ms. Haslebacher, Brentwood’s teacher of Material Arts and Design, brings metal to life with students. When asked why she chose metal of all the possible art materials, Ms. Haslebacher stated emphatically that “It’s very versatile”. She explains that “Copper is my favourite metal to work with. It is one of the few metals you can find on the surface of the earth. People have been working this metal for thousands of years.”

When asked about education, Ms. Haslebacher responded that she “went to the school of life” learning her skills from mentors, beginning with her grandfather. “When I was a child, I would spend summers with my grandparents. My grandfather had a magical workshop, and he would teach me metalwork. The workshop left a lifelong impression on me.”

Outside of formal education in metal work, design or fine arts (her degree is in Environmental Studies), Ms. Haslebacher chose community partnerships to build reciprocity of skills with BCIT instructors, collective design groups, and a local Indigenous knowledge keeper and artist as part of her education.

Sophie Oliveira de Barata, an artist and designer, working in cutting-edge prosthetic design, is a favourite of Ms. Haslebacher, who explains that “Design is like the marriage between engineering and arts & sciences,” clearly evident with de Barata’s work. This approach by Ms. Haslebacher aligns with de Barata’s approach of “don’t be afraid to think outside the box…and push it as far as you can.”

When asked about skills that are most important in the design and metalwork profession, Ms. Haslebacher responded with “resilience, flexibility (as in changing your idea if it goes south) and creative problem solving”. At Brentwood, learning is often about exactly these skills. Entering the next stage of life and learning means being able to solve problems and persevere when concepts “go south”. It is also an important life skill to rely on personal strength to be resilient in the face of barriers and problems. These skills and hands-on courses at Brentwood, led by Ms. Haslebacher, are in line with Canada’s National Education Strategy focused on critical thinking, not memorization.

If money and time were no object, Ms. Haslebacher’s some creations she would undertake span from medieval crowns to contemporary prosthetics, pushing the edge of design. Her answers and choices reveal the amazingly varied possibilities from this material. For her, metal, and working and creating with metal, are both historic and future-forward. .

Her passion for metalwork is contagious. She explains that “there is a special feeling you get from making things, having to face challenges and overcome them”. She brings this strength and knowledge to her teaching in Material Arts and Design. In discussing the value of metal work, student comments focused on the role of creativity. Jasper S indicated that “metal work gives us possibilities and lets us be creative”. This was supported by Paul S who said it is the “creative flexibility” of metal work that is interesting to him.

When asked why she wants to share this knowledge with Brentwood students, she explained, “Sharing that feeling and seeing the look of awe on students’ faces when they create something special” is what motivates her teaching in this course. Solace M suggested that metal work “lets me make ideas into real things” – just as Ms. Haslebacher hoped.

Gladstone SH, Rogers ’26

Where Students Choose To Be