“Iron Pearls” director E. Vincent Martinez knew from the start that Elizabeth Brim’s work was special: She is a blacksmith of unusual skill, delicacy and even whimsy, known for turning solid metal into traditionally feminine objects like stilettos, ballet tutus and jewelry that appear so light that they might be made of cloth, or paper.
Martinez met Brim years ago, when they were both renowned artists at the Penland School of Craft in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina. And in “Iron Pearls,” a documentary about her life, the two artists challenge expectations about what anyone can and can’t do.
Brim notes in the doc that she was raised a Southern girl in a fairly conservative family. When she first tried blacksmithing — traditionally one of the most male-dominated professions — her mother informed her her she didn’t approve.
So Brim rebelled. She made beautiful, feminine objects, forged from strength and fire. The film’s title refers to the necklace of pearls Brim made for herself.
The film opened the Arkansas Cinema Society’s latest edition of Filmland on Wednesday, serving as both a fascinating, hypnotic watch, and as a kind of declaration of intent: Like so many selected for the festival, Brim and Martinez refuse to be pigeonholed.
Martinez skillfully finds time not only for a brief history of blacksmithing, but also for a lovely story of Brim designing a metal broom for a same-sex couple, in the jump-the-broom tradition of one of the grooms’ African-American ancestors.
We also learn about Brim’s love of Tupac Shakur, another artist who blended strength, sensitivity and surprise.
The Cuban-born Martinez previously made Bringle: a Tale of Two Makers, about identical-twin artists Cynthia and Edwina Bringle. He also co-owns Mirrorball Gallery, a fine art and contemporary craft space in Tryon, North Carolina, with his husband, Alex Page.
As “Iron Pearls” screened at Filmland Wednesday, we asked Martinez about his long connection to Brim, capturing her true essence, and the beauty of contradictions.
E. Vincent Martinez on His Elizabeth Brim Documentary Iron Pearls
MovieMaker: How did you first meet Elizabeth Brim?
E. Vincent Martinez: Penland School of Craft is definitely the common denominator. I met Elizabeth in 1988, when I was a Core student at Penland. It’s a truly magical place — one of those rare environments where artists, ideas and friendships seem to collide in unexpected ways.
Penland is a renowned craft center in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina, offering workshops and programs in disciplines including clay, glass, textiles, paper, printmaking, photography and iron. Founded in 1929, it has become an important part of the American craft landscape.
For me, it was also where I first encountered Elizabeth and began a friendship that would eventually, decades later, lead to this film.
MovieMaker: How did you hone in on the angle that she’s making very feminine designs in the typically masculine profession of blacksmithing?
E. Vincent Martinez: It wasn’t an angle we had to manufacture. It’s one of the things that has always separated Elizabeth from so many others in the field. She has spent her entire career masterfully taking traditionally feminine objects and ideas — shoes, dresses, flowers, handbags, even pearls — and translating them into iron.
Her high-heeled stilettos, made of steel, stopped traffic at one of her first blacksmithing exhibitions decades ago. There was something wonderfully provocative about seeing an object so associated with femininity transformed into something as hard, heavy and seemingly masculine as iron. Elizabeth has always understood that contradiction, and she has made it part of her language as an artist.
MovieMaker: She has a playful sense of humor that really shines through. Was this fun to make?
E. Vincent Martinez: Absolutely. Elizabeth is so charismatic, funny and captivating that my cinematographer, Franklin Mills, and I had an incredible time filming her. There was very little separation between the Elizabeth we knew and the Elizabeth you see on camera.
What you see in Iron Pearls is genuinely her. Elizabeth has an infectious energy, and sometimes the best thing we could do was simply turn the cameras on and let her be Elizabeth.
MovieMaker: Can you talk about the Arkansas connection with this film? (I’m thinking especially of her designing the broom for the couple’s wedding before same-sex marriage was legal.) Why were you excited about playing at Filmland?
E. Vincent Martinez: The Arkansas connection comes through several people and stories, but for this particular chapter, “Jumping the Iron Broom,” art collectors — and dear friends of Elizabeth — Brad and Bobby Cushman played a significant role.
Their story is beautiful and deeply emotional. Elizabeth created an iron broom for their wedding at a time when same-sex marriage was not yet legal in Arkansas. That object became much more than a work of art. It became a symbol of love, commitment and the ability of art to hold a moment in history.
When we traveled to Little Rock to film, we arrived during a major snowstorm and ended up snowed in at Brad and Bobby’s house. What initially felt like a production nightmare turned into a blessing. We had the time and freedom to let the cameras roll and simply capture the people, the stories and the atmosphere around us. Some of those spontaneous moments became incredibly important to the film.
Filmland is a respected festival, so having Iron Pearls screen there is especially exciting. And it’s great to be back in Little Rock — this time, without the snow.
MovieMaker: What do you think Tupac represents for Elizabeth?
E. Vincent Martinez: Elizabeth has loved Tupac forever, and everyone who knows her knows it. Her home and studio are filled with Tupac posters, calendars, CDs, stickers, magnets and clothing. She’ll put his music on a loop while she’s working.
For Elizabeth, Tupac represents energy. There’s a rawness, honesty and force in his music that resonates with her. I think she responds to that unapologetic spirit—the idea of making something powerful, personal and impossible to ignore.
It’s also one of those details that tells you something about Elizabeth that you wouldn’t necessarily expect from a world-renowned blacksmith. And that’s part of what makes her so fascinating. She contains all of these contradictions — strength and femininity, toughness and playfulness, tradition and rebellion. Tupac somehow fits perfectly into that mix.
You can learn more about Filmland here and read more of our festival coverage here.
Main image: Elizabeth Brim with the broom in “Iron Pearls.” Courtesy of the filmmaker.
