Donald Dawson
Vancouver Metal Fabricator • Blacksmith • Restorer • Instructor • Artist
Donald Dawson’s motto, “Let’s get rid of our throwaway society,” shows his strong respect for history, the sentimental value of people’s keepsakes, and the importance of preserving heritage. When people bring their damaged family heirlooms or treasured belongings, he understands their emotional attachment and their reluctance to part with these items. If something can be repaired instead of discarded, he’s fully dedicated to it.
From UBC to Small Business Owner
Donald Dawson’s 22-year career in UBC’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering included many fascinating projects. As an Electrical Engineering Technician and Red Seal Journeyman Machinist, he worked on diverse and exceptional research initiatives and taught faculty, staff, and students.
During those years, he developed research components in robotics, fibre optics, nanoscale technology, medical devices, microwave, and radio sciences, including:
A Leadership Program Leads to Change
Although Donald’s work at UBC was fascinating, he always dreamed of opening a shop. When his wife invited him to join her at one of four retreats during a Leadership Training Program she was attending, it rekindled those dreams. Without hesitation, he resigned and completed the leadership program.
It was finally time to do what he had hoped for many years, when he learned blacksmithing from the late John Smith of Kootenay Forge in Crawford Bay, BC.
Finding a space for his studio wasn't immediate. Donald had his eye on the only place he wanted for his shop, and in 2016, after waiting two years, a studio space became available at The Mergatroid Building in East Vancouver.
Kootenay Forge Founder John Smith with Donald Dawson
A Passion for Teaching
UBC
For 22 years, working as both a student shop supervisor and a machinist, he helped students turn their ideas and designs into reality. This involved refining and adjusting their designs, which required precise machining and the assembly of complex parts, including small, detailed components for the research previously mentioned.
With calmness and ingenuity, Donald developed methods for students with special needs, such as those with cerebral palsy, to help them safely access and operate equipment, fabricate and complete their lab projects, and ultimately graduate.
Donald was deeply passionate about the heart and soul of teaching. He refined his teaching skills by carefully observing his teachers from childhood through his professional training. He focused on their teaching styles and how they connected with students. It was the teachers who loved teaching, remained calm, and communicated their messages clearly that inspired him, not the army sergeant types.
Concerned these days about the declining support for trades and technical training, Donald is eager to share his skills with people of all ages.
Private School High School Students
High school students from private high schools came for lessons because their schools lacked metalworking facilities or teachers.
In one instance, it was a final project requirement for high school graduation. In another, the school supported a major fabrication project.
Donald has completed a Criminal Record Check required by the education system and has been vetted by the Vancouver Police Department.
Metro Vancouver Regional District’s Sewer Division
Donald was hired to train the Sewer Division staff, which operates a blacksmith shop that repairs tools and hardware for the City of Vancouver. Donald designed and delivered a training program and taught at both their shop and his. Donald’s shop can accommodate up to two people for specialized personal attention and training.
Making Art for the Annual Vancouver Eastside Culture Crawl
In 2016, Donald created his first piece—a large LED lamp made from an empty steel gas cylinder. When struck with a rubber mallet, this lamp produced remarkable sounds. Later, a juried panel chose the lamp to represent that year's theme, “Sound of Light.” It was his first public gallery exhibition, and he was thrilled.
The Crawl inspires Donald to produce new artworks, including forged-inflated pieces. People aren’t aware that metal art, such as musical instruments, animals, or pillows, can be inflated. Besides showcasing his artwork, Donald has also held demonstrations for visitors, where he heats and shapes metal into various objects.
Having completed so many unusual research projects at UBC, Donald wasn’t surprised when a Culture Crawl organizer called him a mad scientist in 2018 for building The Bicycle-Powered Pipe Organ. It was a favourite among visitors.
Pathways To A Career
An Enriching Childhood
Donald’s father, a geologist and mining engineer, shared his knowledge of mining, bridge-building, engineering, rocks, and minerals, and took him on field trips, including tours of underground hard-rock and coal mines, glass factories, steel mills, ship yards and train repair facilities.
Donald’s love for trains began during annual Christmas train trips with his family. From age 2 to 17, Donald and his family travelled by train from Vancouver to Banff. He grew curious about how trains were built, from steam locomotives to the newest models. The fact that his great-great-great-grandfather drove trains for the Canadian Pacific Railway only deepened his interest.
Both parents, interested in creative development and brain function, took him to lectures at Simon Fraser University on those topics before he was even 10.
When they noticed Donald’s curiosity about how things operated, they allowed him to take apart clocks and other mechanical devices to learn about their inner workings. As a high school student, these skills proved valuable when he managed the audiovisual department and repaired equipment and media.
Donald’s parents encouraged him to explore various art forms, such as puppetry, ballet, swimming, and figure skating. He participated in all of them throughout his childhood and teenage years.
Donald’s family camped throughout BC during summer holidays, and he developed a passion for history, small towns, and how people survived. During visits to museums and antique stores, his love of period tools and collectibles grew, and he gradually began collecting mining lamps, model trains, railroad lanterns, steam whistles, and steamship equipment.
They drove through Nelson, then up through Fort Steele and Radium Hot Springs, and ended at the family’s favourite spot – Banff. Once there, they attended all the summer shows at the Banff Centre for Art and Creativity. Banff, where Donald would attend school immediately after high school, was both a summer and winter destination.
Donald’s interest in theatre was ignited by his mother, whose uncle worked as a lighting technician and was also a merchant mariner during the war. The family frequently attended plays, musicals, ballet performances, and operas, exposing him to these art forms, which in turn inspired him to study and apprentice as a Stage Manager and Stage Carpenter at the Banff Centre for Art and Creativity.
Model Building: A Path to Becoming a Machinist
While working at Lindsay Architectural Models, he restored a mechanical relief map of a railway in Rogers Pass, Illecillewaet, B.C. He machined and fabricated new parts for the mechanism that powered the tiny train, which moved via a bicycle chain around the mountain through tunnels. This model was displayed at the Rogers Pass Discovery Centre.
Volunteerism: Life At Sea & Expanding Professional Skills
From 2002 to 2007, Donald volunteered on the heritage steam towboat SS Master. As Third Engineer, he machined, fabricated, and restored valves, fuel and water pumps, winches, the boiler, and the triple-expansion steam engine. He also maintained and operated mechanical devices in the wheelhouse and galley and hosted and cooked for the Wooden Boat Society meets.
Besides restoring the SS Master towboat, he also repaired steam whistles. In August 2003, he attended the 8th Annual Celebration of Steam at the BC Forest Discovery Centre in Duncan, B.C. The head of Education and Curatorial Operations invited him to give a lecture about the SS Master. For that event, he brought 11 whistles he had restored, weighing a total of 900 pounds, and operated them at this steam-powered whistle-blowing event.
Restoration – Operating Steam Whistles
Restoration – Steam Whistles with Peter Ommundsen & Donald Dawson
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Donald's Innovations & Repairs