Pierre Nadeau Information

Swordsmith
Quebec, Canada

Biography:
Born in Montréal, Pierre Nadeau visits various fields, studying and working in photography and management. In 2002 he decides to visit Japan with the hope of experimenting its culture on a first-hand basis. A stay that was intended for a few months turns into a full chapter in his life : Pierre comes back to Québec in 2011 with valuable assets and a more focussed will. After discovering traditional swordsmithing on the day of Christmas 2002, Pierre only entered apprenticeship in January 2006 under a young smith from Wakayama. Five and a half-year of ups and downs marked the Québécois' adventure. Pierre is the only non-Japanese after the late Keith Austin to have completed apprenticeship. Only missing is the test, expected to be taken in 2013, to be considered a fully-fledged member of the intimate japanese swordsmiths community.

He comes back to Canada to take over the helm at Les Forges de Montréal, an NPO dedicated at preserving the traditional blacksmithing heritage, with founder Mathieu Collette. There he builds his forge and operates Les Forges' new high-furnace : practice, research and hard work just begin.