Ilya Alekseyev is a weapons maker, armorer, engraver and philosopher. I spoke to him at Magfest 2018 about his work with the Man At Arms Reforged show and other things.
2:03 – Alexei talks about the Kings of Avalon sword. He is proud of the amount of engraving he did for it. Engraving is his specialty.
3:18 – He is inspired sometimes by the subject matter. Sometimes the material he uses inspires him. The challenge of the project also inspires him.
4:17 – He’s a big fan of the Japanese tradition of sword smithing. They treat swords as artwork and have established traditions for this. Most other places in the world do not have a continuous culture of appraising swords and treating them as artwork.
6:43 – His library is the most important tool for his work. His classical literature collection is what is important to balance his skills. It helps to guide his hands.
9:20 – The two things he enjoys most are one, using the charcoal forge. The process is meditative. The second is engraving and chasing.
11:11 – He started weapons making in college when he needed a job while studying Philosophy. His first piece of armor was probably a chain mail shirt. His first sword was a Polish sabre. A 17th century one.
12:38 – His Philosophy thesis was on intellectual property.
17:29 – Philosophy is still a very big part of his life.
18:11 – He doesn’t remember his first professional sale. He works during the day on Baltimore Knife and Sword projects and after that he works on his personal weapon projects. He treats weapons as art objects not as something for violence.
20:19 – He was inspired by Tolkien just like everyone in the Western world. Anime has inspired him a lot. He really likes the anime Kill la Kill. Bladerunner is amazing to him. Zelany’s work is great food for the mind. Bradbury’s Martian Chronicles gave him an appreciation for American literature. Ghost in the Shell was and is amazing. He knows the Stanislaw brothers works and enjoys them.
23:22 – He would like to make the Divined Jewel Spears of Heavens from the Kojiki. He would like to make one or both of Charlemagne’s swords. The saber was made in Russia and requires a lot of gold.
Links
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kill_la_Kill
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghost_in_the_Shell
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kojiki
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Guests: Ilya Alekseyev
Host: Cris Alvarez
