In 5th grade, I fell in love with welding with my first experience at a local foundry. The visceral process of the smells, the sounds, the taste, and the heat. To make metal soft, mutable. To weld two pieces into one. The durability and weightiness. Even as an adult, this process rekindles that childlike enthusiasm of play.
For me, sculpture is the journey of expressing what I envision in my mind’s eye and the experience of how the work is realized in becoming whole. It is discovery and challenge with materials that can sometimes guide how the creation of the work will evolve.
I gravitate towards base materials, e.g. plate, round stock, and tube stock metals versus found objects. I set limitations and boundaries on some projects and strive to work within them: only scrap from my last project, no welding, no grinding, work fast to not overthink, adhering to a guideline for the pattern, etc. Above all, I want to make sure that my work serves to yield my vision that is rooted structurally but also to push it and experiment.
Throughout, I strive for balance in form, flow, and movement. Sculpture is the challenge and exploration of ideas. From simple to complex, it is the curiosity of how the concept expresses itself in reality. Ideas can be driven by need or just interest in the form. Each project helps inform new ideas. Everything, I find, is connected and helps reveal the next steps. That discovery is what makes the process addictive, the wanting to see what is coming next over the horizon.
In a way, for me life is a giant artwork that is fluid. How we build, decorate, and design our environments. How we shape our lives. Imbuing creative energy into art helps shape those spaces and make personal pockets in this tapestry. Art is curiosity and a love of learning combined with the need to create. I use the artistic process as a way to understand the narrative that blends creativity and discovery of creation. I am drawn to find balance in my work to help counter the chaos in the rest of my life. Working in metal helps ground me. The material is heavy and has inertia. The process requires focus. Welding is methodical and can’t be rushed, a lot like life.
In 5th grade, I fell in love with welding with my first experience at a local foundry. The visceral process of the smells, the sounds, the taste, and the heat. To make metal soft, mutable. To weld two pieces into one. The durability and weightiness. Even as an adult, this process rekindles that childlike enthusiasm of play.
For me, sculpture is the journey of expressing what I envision in my mind’s eye and the experience of how the work is realized in becoming whole. It is discovery and challenge with materials that can sometimes guide how the creation of the work will evolve.
I gravitate towards base materials, e.g. plate, round stock, and tube stock metals versus found objects. I set limitations and boundaries on some projects and strive to work within them: only scrap from my last project, no welding, no grinding, work fast to not overthink, adhering to a guideline for the pattern, etc. Above all, I want to make sure that my work serves to yield my vision that is rooted structurally but also to push it and experiment.
Throughout, I strive for balance in form, flow, and movement. Sculpture is the challenge and exploration of ideas. From simple to complex, it is the curiosity of how the concept expresses itself in reality. Ideas can be driven by need or just interest in the form. Each project helps inform new ideas. Everything, I find, is connected and helps reveal the next steps. That discovery is what makes the process addictive, the wanting to see what is coming next over the horizon.
In a way, for me life is a giant artwork that is fluid. How we build, decorate, and design our environments. How we shape our lives. Imbuing creative energy into art helps shape those spaces and make personal pockets in this tapestry. Art is curiosity and a love of learning combined with the need to create. I use the artistic process as a way to understand the narrative that blends creativity and discovery of creation. I am drawn to find balance in my work to help counter the chaos in the rest of my life. Working in metal helps ground me. The material is heavy and has inertia. The process requires focus. Welding is methodical and can’t be rushed, a lot like life.