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The Making of Steel Magnolias: MTC's New Ornamental Ironworks Program
Moultrie Technical College ’s Tifton campus ornamental ironworks instructor George Tomberlin is dwarfed by the 8-foot tall, 300-pound bear he created using a mig welder, torch and hammer. As a result of living in Alaska for 18 years, being an avid outdoorsman and an admirer of nature, he also developed an admiration for the grizzly bear. The bear resides in Lenox and greets guests.
TIFTON , GA. With over three decades of welding and metal fabrication experience, an 18-year journey from south Georgia to the Alaskan oil fields and back again, and a day job as the service manager for Tifton’s Little River Harley Davidson dealership, George Tomberlin may sound to most people like a tough man without much of a soft side. Such is not the case with this self-described “self-taught artist” who was born in Fitzgerald and now lives in Lenox among breathtaking examples of his creations of steel. “It’s a God-given talent with art. Metal is my thing to work with. Metal is where I express my art,” Tomberlin says of his ornamental ironworks. From wildlife scenes and fireplace accessories to mailboxes and gates to life-size grizzly bears, he claims he bends steel with fire simply for personal enjoyment and admits, “A lot of my art comes from nature.” Tomberlin’s resume of work experience in the maintenance and mechanical field is extensive and includes such credentials as membership in the American Welding Society, in which he is a certified welding educator and one of only 20,000 certified welding inspectors worldwide.
Tomberlin says most people don’t understand that, “Our whole world is held together by welding…you can transform metal into any shape you want, and it is very forgiving.” Upon his return to South Georgia, he developed and began East Central Technical College’s welding and joining program in Fitzgerald in 1999. In May of 2004 he became the service manager at Little River Harley Davidson in Tifton and reminisces, “All my life I have had a love for motorcycles.” Unable to leave his penchant for metal fabrication behind, Tomberlin joined the adjunct faculty of Moultrie Technical College’s Tifton campus in August 2004 as the night welding and joining program instructor. Under Tomberlin’s instruction the evening class roster has grown from just four students to 21 last quarter. And his vision has birthed the beginning of a new welding certificate program focused on art, making it the only one of its kind in our region. Moultrie Tech’s summer quarter, which begins July 11, will be the first to include Ornamental Ironworks courses with all classes being taught on the college’s Tifton campus. Tomberlin explains, “The program is perfect for anyone interested in art…all skill levels…male or female, but you don’t have to be an artist to do it.” The only requirement for the class is a safety test for everyone prior to going into the shop. He describes the learning process as very individualized. Students will start with the fundamentals of welding and then move to “mig” welding and torch skills using all types of metals and materials. To create their own works of art, students can draw patterns or work freehand and will learn how to heat metal and shape it. Tomberlin adds, “If you visualize it, you can do it. Your imagination is your limitation.” He says the class will be “all hands-on” and will end with public displays of one art project from each student. “Students have fun and learn and have something to show for it when they’re finished.” For details about Moultrie Technical College’s Ornamental Ironworks certificate program, call (229) 391-2600 in Tifton. Media Release- July 1, 2005 Contact: Jana Wiggins, Moultrie Technical College, Director of Marketing
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