Process

To make the sculptures I scavenge scrap yards and construction sites for evocatively shaped pieces of steel, looking for pre-existing lines and shapes with which to draw. Most of the metal is rebar, the reinforcement rod used in buildings, bridges, and highways. Rendered from the concrete for recycling, it comes in a great variety of curves, shapes, and thicknesses. To begin a sculpture I have an idea of the type of animal it’s going to be, and a rough mental image of the gesture. I sketch loosely, welding steel line to line in the air. Rather than bending every piece, I choose pre-existing curves and cut them free from the pile with an oxy-acetylene torch. If I need to adjust the shape I heat and bend with the torch. The arc welder is immediate: I can tack weld a steel line in place and if I don’t like it can twist it off easily. Only in the final stage is each section welded thoroughly. Since the sculpture is not a solid form all the connections have to be strong; I spend a lot of time on the final welding to make the piece ready for transportation and installation.