I start the day very tired and with extremely sore hands so am in no rush to get to college. When I do arrive it's obvious that the room has been a hive of activity.

The moulds have all been fired and a housing has been made to hold them surrounded by sand. The furnice has been lit and the bronze has just been added. It's a cold and rainy day outside so we all sit around drinking tea (or wine), mesmerised by the flames and sleepy from the warmth, just soaking in the atmosphere. All the while Terry keeps control of the fire and the melting metal and looks majestic standing over it. There is an air of hushed anticipation about the whole process permeating the room and what seems to be a feeling of excitement to see each other's work and the results of all our hard labour. The use of fire makes the process seems magical and timeless. I think we all now feel the fate of our work is in the hands of the Gods.

As we sit I get chatting to a fellow student, Brian Williams. Brian is a fantastic artist, whom you can read more about here and who has work currently exhibited at The Tower of London. When not working on his piece Brian has been sitting sketching all of us as we go about our work. Having never been sketched before I'm naturally intrigued to see what he's drawn and when I sit with him to look through his sketchbooks I am amazed. I have never looked so good!

I really admire anyone who can convey so much in just a few lines. The ability to do this, and see the world in the way you need to in order to achieve this, is so alien to me. Imagine being able to conjure an image up in a few pen strokes. I think if I had this talent I too would be like Brian and spend as much time using it as I could. He draws so freely and quickly, which he says is due to always trying to capture people quickly before they move out of his sight. What a treat to see such work being created before my eyes.

Soon the first batch of metal is sufficiently heated and the treacherous task of transfering it from the furnice to the moulds begins. With a few people (all wrapped up as much as possible to protect themselves) carrying the crucible the metal is soon pouring and we get to watch it turn from red hot to a darker colour as it begins to cool down. We're all drawn in by the patterns the cooling leaves on the surface of the metal.

After another hour or so the next batch of metal is melted and I get to see my mould being filled. With 12 moulds sitting warm, and filled with potential, it's time to head home with our fingers crossed that all our hard work pays off.