Metal Casting – Material, Craft & Place. A study in the role of making in building narrative expression Part 2 Dissertation 2019 Bronwen Chatwin Birmingham City University | UK This study aims to enforce the connection between the designer and maker, focusing on metal casting as a means of producing architectural elements. Understanding the manipulation of metal allows the designer-maker craftsman to bridge the boundaries between material, design and place. In order to comprehend the material and its form, it is important to study the processes by which building elements may contribute towards an architectural narrative through the use of case studies. The dissertation documents these precedents along with rigorous iteration and testing of the casting processes.Due to innovations in casting iron at the Ironbridge Gorge throughout the 18th Century and its impacts on the industrial revolution, metal casting transferred globally to encompass new uses for cast iron both structurally and ornamentally. It is not only the innovative material and its prevalent use that is the focus of the study, but the combination of design process and fabrication that enable architectural storytelling.From sand cast facade to column cladding, to the making of a precise object using lost wax casting, the study culminates in the conceptual and ornamental application of fabrication techniques to a design project for a villa and vineyard situated in The Roman City of Wroxeter. Tutor(s) Alessandro Columbano