Pour'n Yer Heart Out

It’s the 15th annual edition of FeLion Studios' annual “community iron pour” event, which features the creation of iron works from molds made by professional and community artists. It’s sure to warm up a winter day at Olbrich Gardens, also hosting its annual open house with drop-in activities, music and refreshments. The iron pouring for previously created molds starts about 1 p.m. and is handled by pros, but those who would like a more hands-on experience can try out “Foundry in a Box,” a mini-mold and tin pour project available in the education center from 10 a.m.-noon ($10). Spectator admission is free, and an afterparty follows from 6-10 p.m. at Garver Feed Mill. Find all the details at ​felionstudios.com.

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Tom Flemming Photography

The scene at the 2020 Pour'n Yer Heart Out event hosted by FeLion Studios.

media release: The PYHO (Pour’n Yer Heart Out) community iron casting event will be celebrating its 15th year in production on Saturday, February 17, 2024 hosted at Olbrich Botanical Gardens in Madison. This radical winter gathering brings together artisans from all across the Midwest to pour over 3,000 lbs of molten iron into a wide variety of molds made during workshops in our community and by professional foundry (metal casting) artists who created their molds ahead of time and are traveling into town to get them cast and help with the event.

The results showcase the phenomenal creativity within our community, and the incredible ability of artisans to create highly detailed iron castings in the middle of a park-like setting, during the dead of winter.

The PYHO event happens in collaboration with the Olbrich Gardens Annual Open House, so there’s no time to be bored during the day. Enjoy the Winter Farmer’s market in the morning over at Garver, then hop on over next door to Olbrich for a rare green house tour and indoor family-friendly activities before heading outside to watch the spectacle of iron casting around 1pm in the circular “great lawn” space central within the gardens.

The day’s event is free & open to spectators and community members to learn about the operations at the gardens and watch the FeLion iron tribe cast molten iron into over 200 molds (2500+ lbs of metal!) into everyone’s molds that day.

What's new?  We have a FeLion "Foundry in a Box" coming to this year's pour, stationed inside Olbrich's Education Center and open between 10am-noon the day of the event (2/17). Anyone can come and experience the full foundry process in 30 min. time, by making a tiny sand mold and casting it themselves with our tiny tin foundry setup. $10 to participate in this activity. Participants can choose from a selection of PYHO patterns and come out with a groovy little key chain that you can say you cast yourself ! 

Don’t forget the after party! Once the iron cools, join us next door at the Garver Feed Mill after the event between 6pm-10pm for drink specials, amazing food, and the chance to hang out with the whole iron casting crew all night while they are in town! Enjoy $1 off drinks (beer + wine) if you have the official “Pour'n Yer Heart Out” EVENT MUG, available for purchase online and pickup during the pour at our merch table inside Olbrich during the event.

See you on the pour floor & afterwards at Garver Lounge!

If you are an artist hoping to bring a mold, or come ahead of time to the studio to make a more complicated (2-part or other) mold to be cast during the event, let’s connect so we can help make your visit a total success! Click the link above to learn more about the casting & mold making fees, what to bring, where to go, and who to contact :} Visiting Artists

We’ve kept PYHO free and inclusive for 15 years through a mix of highly attended workshops and the extended support of a fabulous pool of corporate and individual community sponsors every year.

Consider joining the team of business & community leaders who enjoy the exposure of their engagement with local creative and manufacturing industries at the big event. Everyone benefits from the material and financial sponsors by keeping the event safe, organized, comfortable & fun for all who attend! Sponsors

We are offering 6 mold making workshops for the 2024 PYHO event, where community members from any experience level are invited to participate in the creative foundry experience through guided classes that inspire new ways of thinking, and provide an opportunity to make a relief (1-sided) cast iron art piece. Pre-registration is required. Workshops begin Jan. 14, 2024, across 3 locations in Madison and Mineral Point. Learn more at https://www.felionstudios.com/workshops/pyho2024

If workshops aren’t your “thing”, but you still want to participate by making an iron casting, then picking up one of the blank pre-made “scratch tile” sand molds might be the perfect way for you to get involved! Recommended for the independent type who enjoys working at your own pace and just trying things out on your own, the "scratch tile” are suitable for every skill & experience level out there. Head over to the gift store inside Olbrich Botanical Gardens to grab your favorite mold shape before they are picked over!

Have you been to one of our pours and want to help in some way?! We have a variety of creative, general labor, and administrative tasks that have a rotation of volunteers fill each event.Fill out our Volunteer Interest Form so you can get on the email list for current and upcoming events!