Our Story
Winnipesaukee Forge: devotion to craft, commitment to quality, and elegance of design.
"My work is all about a reinterpretation of nature..." says Winnipesaukee Forge's David Little. It was inevitable that forged metal and the natural world would blend seamlessly for Dave. Exposed early on to beautiful antique metal work in his grandparents' home, David was fascinated. His lifelong love of the outdoors also began in childhood with summers spent at his great grandfather's lake property in New Hampshire. In his adolescence, it was at summer camp where he not only first encountered blacksmithing, but was introduced to it in his preferred setting – the outdoors. "I was hooked..." and he was also thrilled to discover and fire – his great grandfather's forge on the lake property where he had summered for years. He immediately connected to family history as this Silversmith great grandfather had also been quite a blacksmith in his work building boats.
David's journey melding the historic with the new and the forged with the natural began. In the early years he gave demonstrations and worked educating visitors at the New Hampshire's Squam Lakes Science Center. He attended Marlborough College in Vermont where he opened his first solo business. At Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Deer Isle, Maine, he attended classes including one workshop taught by Peter Ross, whom was the Master Blacksmith for Colonial Williamsburg at the time. A visit to Colonial Williamsburg followed–the opportunity to hone historic techniques and interact with the public was no to be missed. Shows and commissions after this time focused on restoration hardware and home deéor. As Davie puts it, "I was so happy that people were seeking me out to buy my work, and I was ready to try something fresh and new." His first pieces "reinterpreting nature" were created in collaboration with his wife (design partner at the time) Heidi Little. "These designs from nature just felt right and have inspired everything I have done since."
The designs David creates today have continued to evolve. Years of work crafting historic reproductions now blend with his signature organic motifs. Oak, birch, ginkgo, and maple leaves as well as grape vines and clusters are just some of the designs in the extensive line of home furnishings and architectural elements for purchase here. But David does not limit himself– he collaborates with other artisans; he designs and creates donor recognition art for non–profit organizations and custom orders are welcomed. "I pride myself on being able to listen to your ideas and to create what we design together."
In 2012, David and Heidi Little established "The Arts Collaborative," in Meredith, New Hampshire. "The Arts Collaborative" is the Lakes Region's only comprehensive arts complex featuring on site artist studios, an arts education venue with teaching studio, and a gallery and design showroom open (please call ahead, 603 279 5492) to the public and the trades. The gallery and design showroom showcases individual work by Winnipesaukee Forge; collaborations with wood, metal, and ceramic artist Steven Hayden; and the selected work of other exceptional artisans.
A juried member of the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen for over 20 years, David's work can also be found at the Annual Craftsmen's Fair in August at Mt. Sunapee Resort, the League's Galleries throughout New Hampshire, and Paradise City Arts Festivals in Massachusetts.