Professor of Sculpture Coral Lambert to conduct iron pour performance in Bethlehem, PA

lambert's stars — Professor Coral Lambert's cast iron stars light up the evening sky.

Alfred University Professor of Sculpture Coral Lambert next month will transport her portable iron furnace to Bethlehem, PA for a site-specific iron pour performance.

Lambert will melt and cast hot iron stars in the shape of the city’s “Bethlehem Star” in front of the historic steel furnace stacks, now decommissioned. According to Lambert, the casting of the Bethlehem stars will become a story celebrating and reigniting memories of when the historic steel works were in full operation.

The “Star Factory” producing the stars uses a portable coke-fired iron furnace that melts recycled iron with the assistance of an experienced crew including several students from the National Casting Center Foundry at Alfred University’s School of Art & Design. Digital artist pioneer Paul Higham will complement the performance with a composition of electronic industrial sounds sampled from the environment.

The performance is scheduled for 7pm Saturday, March 15 at the Historic SteelStacks in Bethlehem, 101 Founder’s Way. The spectacle is open to the public to view at no charge.

Beginning at dusk, iron casters will parade the stars along the lawn in front of the stacks and place them in premade stands, much like setting a flagpole. Still glowing red, they will slowly fade as the sound composition plays and the molten iron is poured. About 40 stars will be poured over a one-hour period.

Lambert’s original “Starry Starry Night” was performed at Salem Art Works as part of a series of molten iron and fire performance works that she has been developing in tandem with sound produced by Higham over the past 30 years. Projects have included “The Seeping Furnace,” performed in Franconia, MN; “Volcano Furnace,” performed in Latvia; “Diamonds,” in Basel, Switzerland; “Ferrous Bloom,” NY, “Flowers of Elysium” and Garden of Fiery Delights”, in Berlin’s Brandenburgh Industrial Museum and most recently “Ferrum Lux” performed at the Historic Carrie Furnaces in Pittsburgh, PA in 2023 as part of the Festival of Combustion.

Each of these performances have been site- and time-specific, resulting in cast iron sculpture that is exhibited later. Lambert extends her thanks to ArtsQuest, PA; The Borgenicht Foundation; and The City of Bethlehem for their support.