Distinctly Montana Magazine

L ooking out of the taxi window, Josh Smith was thinking more about the forthcoming meeting with a sheikh than London's cityscape. Would there be a royal officer to translate between Arabic and English? Would armed guards be standing nearby? Would the oc- casion be extremely formal with Arab regalia? The son of the Emir of the United Arab Emirates turned out to be friendly and informal. He was wearing blue jeans; no one was with him; and since he'd been educated in Florida, he visited with Smith in flawless English. The sheikh wanted Josh Smith to see and handle a sword in one of London's museums. The two of them discussed how Smith would make a sword to the sheikh's specifications. Later when Smith had the sword ready to deliver, the sheikh sent tickets for Smith and his wife to fly to Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, to deliver it. legend had to say. That Christmas Josh's parents gave him a Dunkerley knife for a gift, and Dunkerley offered to help Smith make a knife. Smith never turned back. He sold his first knives when he was 12 to his science and math teachers. At 15 he earned his Journeyman Smith certifica- tion through the American Bladesmith Society (ABS), and when he was 19, he earned Master Smith certification. He was the youngest person ever to earn these certifications. "I consider myself an all-around knife maker," said Smith who now lives in Frenchtown, Montana. "My spe- cialty is diversity. Because my knives sell for up to $8,000, I'm considered to be in the art knife class. Any of my knives becomes an investment piece for the purchaser." Knife making has many facets; it takes hours, months, and—sometimes—years to make an art knife. The founda- tion for any handmade knife is a quality-working knife. If art knives are the objective, they are often made of Damas- cus steel, which provides a fine and supple blade. A heat and pressure process is used by forge-welding different kinds of metals to- gether Knife Art: BY SUZANNE WARING Besides visiting London and Abu Dhabi, Smith has been to Paris and Boston and eaten in fantastic restaurants where the chefs purchased handmade culinary knives. Law enforcement personnel who also wanted to purchase handmade knives have guided him around New York City. "Getting to know people through- out the world and seeing where they live are the fringe benefits of knife making," he said. Growing up in the small town of Lincoln, Montana, Smith, 30, started making knives when he was only eleven. His Little League coach, Rick Dunkerley, would bring knives to baseball practice to show the parents. Little Josh had his nose right in there and listened to every word the knife-making Go to www.distinctlymontana.com/knife121 for contact information about these knife-makers and others in Montana. 32 DISTINCTLY MONTANA • WINTER 2011 The Cutting Edge in layers so that they become solidly bonded. The contrast between the different shades of gray and charcoal-colored steel extends through the blade and develops an irregular design on the surface. The even more difficult mosaic Damascus involves controlling the process by positioning various kinds and shapes of metal to make a predetermined design. Mon- tana art knife makers also embellish their knives with gold inlay, engraving, pearl and enamel inlays, file work, and woodcarving to make a really beautiful piece. Another highly skilled smith is Joe Olson who majored in art in college, taught art, and then worked as a carpen- ter before he was bitten by knife making. The specialty of this Journeyman Smith is designing art knives. "I use enamel color inlay in the handle to develop a narrative," said Olson of Geyser, Montana. Pictures of a deck of cards, hunters, faces of women with long-flowing hair, wildlife, or guitars often carry the story told in the knife. "It has been both challenging and DISTINCTLY MONTANA | DIGITAL

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