Down on the Farm Iron Pour

Down on the Farm Iron Pour Future Casting with Iron Casters since 2004. The Ludeking Homestead in Northeast Iowa is a semi-retired farm. Meet ya next to the furnace!

2022 Pour Day is July 2nd - arrive on Thursday June 30th to attend our first DOTF Art Show, hosted by local art center ArtHaus. This will also give you plenty of time to make your mold as ...

THERE WILL BE NO SAND CASTING/MOLD-MAKING AFTER 11:59 PM FRIDAY JULY 1ST [There will be scratch tiles available Saturday, Pour Day, July 2, 2022]

Artists and Iron Pour Curious are welcome to camp on-site an

d indulge in our remarkable menu of meals. Early registration will launch late February - join our email newsletter for all the latest info (in the footer of our website). If you are interested in helping prepare community meals, working in the sand studio or have some other amazing skill we should know about, please email us. In its bustling days, it birthed hundreds of dairy and beef calves, thousands of piglets and tons of crops. Nineteen years ago, the farm gave birth to this iron pour event, an event that has been raised by hundreds of artists over the years, with their own human cycles of birth and transformation. The farm has been in the family for over a hundred years and every year, Kelly and his dad, Ron, are excited to share it with you. This year we have a dedicated and dynamic DOTF round-table board of directors & committee members to bring you an updated experience at an event that's been affectionately nicknamed the Iron Woodstock. These passionate artists & organizers will be coordinating with the Hubert Family once again to coax the behemoth Hubert furnace to life. The pour is guaranteed to dazzle an audience and satisfy participants with its bubbling hot iron.

If you’re planning to join us, or even just thinking about it ...we created something to help you feel more at ease befo...
06/03/2026

If you’re planning to join us, or even just thinking about it ...
we created something to help you feel more at ease before you arrive.

We’ve gathered the most common questions we hear + answered them in one place:

from camping + meals to what it means to spend time on a working farm under active restoration.

It’s a simple way to get oriented + know what to expect.
→ Read FAQs + what to know before you come → link in comments as well as our bio

Feel free to message us if we missed something.

Curious what actually happens at this Iron Pour?There are many ways to step into the experience.You might spend hours in...
05/31/2026

Curious what actually happens at this Iron Pour?

There are many ways to step into the experience.

You might spend hours in the sand studio perfecting your mold …
then gather around the furnace as molten metal tells you what to do …
or simply wander between spaces, taking it all in.

Some come to make.
Some come to witness.
Most find themselves somewhere in between.

Peruse our new Activities webpage with both On-Site + Local Decorah things to do.

→ Explore Activities thru the link in the comments

📷 one of the sand studio walls complete with fresh greenery creeping its way inside - we worked hard to bring that special touch your way

If you’ve been wondering how registration works … it’s actually very simple.You just … choose something.A full package, ...
05/29/2026

If you’ve been wondering how registration works … it’s actually very simple.

You just … choose something.

A full package, some meals, a t-shirt, a pint
whatever feels right to you.

Everything is fulfilled on-site the week of the event, so there’s no complicated logistics to figure out ahead of time.

We send you emails every so often with all the details.

Once you arrive, we’ll get you checked in and oriented, and the rest unfolds from there.

And yes, if you’re wondering what it’s actually like to stay here …

think tent camping in our “Well of Dreams,” shared meals, and a few creative amenities (including a very beloved outdoor shower), a ribbon mixer in the sand studio, pattern + flask studios, coyote songs + so much more.

By popular demand, we've just put the finishing touches on a few helpful webpages to take out some of the guess work. You can always message us with questions too.

Simple, a little rustic, deeply communal and only four weeks away.
→ See what to expect: NEW Amenities page link in comments
→ Register here: Registration link in comments

05/26/2026

Iron Farmers Market Art Show 2026

Submissions extended and opened up to any cast iron piece, not just one made at one of the past Down on the Farm events!

With the show being moved to the farm this year, we have over 1500 square feet to play with - so we figure, what the heck - let’s get rid of that stipulation!

If you want to show some iron in a 1935 barn hayloft in the midst of its restoration journey, there’s no time like the present to fill out the application + submit it by June 12th.

Also - we are in need of pedestals, so if you have extra or one for your piece, please plan on bringing it or reach out to us to coordinate needs.

More details + application in our bio or https://blog.downonthefarmironpour.com/

Opening Reception + Barn Celebration
Thursday, July 2nd from 5-9pm
Free + Open to the Public

📣 If you’re in the Decorah area or need an excuse to plan a fun road trip here, check out our collaboration with the new...
05/05/2026

📣 If you’re in the Decorah area or need an excuse to plan a fun road trip here, check out our collaboration with the newly reignited Driftless Art Collective (DARTCO) + their physical, IRL, gallery.

Your DOTF co-host, Kelly Ludeking, shares this space with over 15 other local artists to accomplish something otherwise impossible to do alone = show in a coveted space in Downtown Decorah, Iowa.

We are excited to host clay tile workshops in the DARTCO space for our upcoming iron pour with 20% of the proceeds going straight to help support local artists!

The Iron Pour will be here before you know it on July 4th, so be sure to attend one of five workshops listed below, starting this Saturday.

➢➢ Location
101 Winnebago St, Decorah, Iowa 52101

➢➢ May
Saturday, May 9th from 10am-5pm
Saturday, May 30th from 10am-5pm
Thursday, May 28th from 5-8pm

➢➢ June
Thursday, June 18th from 5-8pm
Saturday, June 20th from 10am-5pm

➢➢ Cost
$100 for your 8” x 8” clay tile kit (no iron breaking required - unless you want to 😉)

Driftless Art Collective
KRL metals | Kelly Ludeking

04/23/2026

❤️‍🔥 We’re not an academic pour and that’s intentional ❤️‍🔥

Not because we have anything against that path
�many of us, founders, crew + participants alike, have spent time in those spaces + deeply value what they offer.

But what we’re building here is something different.

Down on the Farm is a place where learning happens in an environment where you can integrate it by relaxing in nature.
�Where co-existing side by side can flow naturally from intensity in the studio spaces to nourishing conversations over a meal you didn’t have to think about, much less prepare or hunt down.
�Where sharing long days, collaborative problem-solving + in-person connection support you instead of overwhelm you

and the liberation of knowledge that lives in your hands can be both feral + harnessed into creative expression.

We are rooted more in land + lineage than in curriculum.

There are incredible academic programs out there and if that’s what you’re looking for, we’re genuinely happy to point you in that direction.

This way may not be perfect.�Nor polished.�But it’s real. And it’s ours.
And maybe, it’s yours too.

2026 registration is already over 50% full.

➢ ➢ register through the 🔗 .ironpour where you’ll find our website with more info.

PS Maddie + Tang (both of whom are also fans of the academic path 😉), we’ll miss you this year as your Cast Iron Farmer family celebrates your growing family from afar 🤍

PPS we love the feng shui of living together for a few days too, Maddie 🥰
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🎥 interviews are creative property of | Laura Mullen with amateur editing by | Diane Ludeking with contributions from .metalz | Madeleine Stegman + / .by.tang | Brandon Tang

📷 cover image by | Stin 2024 event

We’re already 50% full for the 2026 Iron Pour which happens July 1-5.We're kinda surprised by your pace for registration...
03/21/2026

We’re already 50% full for the 2026 Iron Pour which happens July 1-5.

We're kinda surprised by your pace for registration as March winds down, but not really.

It was a hard decision to not have a pour in 2025 after 20 consecutive years and you all are chopping at the bit to return!

Every year this gathering grows + every year we’re reminded that this old farm has a natural capacity. Not just for space, but for safety, flow, and the kind of community we’re committed to holding.

Because of that, registration this year is only possible by one of two options :: through the Legacy Program where you will help expand our capacity + vision for future years (and so much more) or by filling out the wait list form to receive a personal invitation for regular registration.

If you’ve been feeling the pull to join us, now is the time to raise your hand.

🔗 Choose your adventure → https://downonthefarmironpour.com

📷 your hosts, Kelly + Diane Ludeking, in the hayloft of your future community space; Kelly is being harassed by Prometheus the orange barn cat while Joey the horse graces the landscape in the background

02/04/2026

We could explain what makes Down on the Farm special, but it feels better to let the people who’ve lived it speak.

Community. Care. Shared work. Shared meals.

This is what grows here 🌾

Registration for 2026 is opening in phases.
We’re using a wait list this year so we can steward the scale + care of the gathering.
The registration link will guide you to the right next step.

🔗 https://downonthefarmironpour.com/registration

🎥 creative property of | Laura Mullen, amateur editing by | Diane Ludeking with contributions from | Marshall Svendson, and | Jay Elias

01/18/2026

💪🏽⬆️ What we were up to on fallow pour weekend 2025.

We will start sending out invites soon to register for 2026 to those on the wait list.

Wait listers get 25% off registration until February 28th so pop on over to the ⛓️in bio or go to https://downonthefarmironpour.com/registration to learn more.

🎥 lower level of the Country Cathedral

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Decorah, IA
52101

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