September Art Work

So, this is what I've been doing lately...
Welding, cutting, painting, bleeding, burning, and getting ready for the fall festivals.

Red Bird

Shrunken Head

Got Tools Robot!

Skull

Cows

Cows in the rain, a cow in the rain, looking at me as I speed by dry in my little blue car...What is it thinking? What am I thinking...

Have a day! Happy 2014!

Smashed and Fun

Bruised, bleeding, burned, smelling like electricity, metal, sweat, paint, grease, and dirt. Welcome to my world, my work. Hazards of the job? Yep. It's my life, and I'm happy. My job is dirty, hot, I melt metal, swirling it together into little circles joining two pieces of steel. I don't go to some nice office or studio, just a  garage, but it is a great space for what I do. I'm noisy, messy, dirty, and sometimes foul mouthed. Hey, smash your finger and tell me how you react?  I make things, cute things, robot things, whimsical things, whatever I want to make things. Mostly though, I have fun. Do you get to be messy at work? Stomp through an old junkyard looking for parts? Pick through oily, greasy scrap metal? Cover your hands in paint for days? Meet interesting people and hear their stories? I do.

 The robot legs and head are from the Atlanta Mini-Makers Faire at Georgia Tech. I had a good day, sold a few pieces. Funny thing I don't think most of those students had a clue that I was one of them, would they've looked at me differently? Treated me better?

Yes, a bunny, a rabbit. A drawing on the chalkboard by my daughter inspired me to make the rabbit. 

Story Time

Once upon a time (because all good stories start that way, right?) there was a store that sold stories, not a book store per se. No this store sold unique stories, you went into the store and told them what you wanted a story about and they made a book with the story and illustrations just for you. Say maybe a story about a cucumber that became a pickle and drove a steamroller and lived on Mars, yup this store would make that into a story for you with illustrations and everything, while you waited. A story about a giraffe that raised llamas on a chicken farm, sure no problem! Even a story about a girl that was a sweet Georgia peach from the city of steel and Vulcan who lived in the country and drew pictures of dogs, houses, and churches, of course the store would make the story for you! There really is a Sweet Georgia Peach and she is an amazing person!

I'm Pluto and I approve this blog.. Now, where's my treat?

So don't you fret and don't you fear for soon you too can have your very own story from the Store of Stories. But maybe in the mean time we can talk about art and such.  I've been busy combing the auto salvage yards this month as I was not completely prepared for a busy Christmas shopping season, which it has been for me. I am very happy and grateful for all of the sales of clocks this year but could some of you guys buy some artwork too? Thanks it's been fun but I've got to motor and write more stories about elephants that dream of being Architects who design underwater homes for walruses and vacation in the Garden of the Gods. And the illustrator has to get drawing too!

Robots and Art

This robot is the latest and largest robot that I have welded. It stands about 4 feet tall, I worked on this at a local middle school with the art teacher. I have to say that this was a very fun sculpture to build as I had students coming out all day to watch, ask questions, and make comments. I haven't done any kind of art in front of a "crowd" in some time, last time was just after college at Cafe Tu Tu Tango. It was very enjoyable to do this in the courtyard behind the art classroom. The art teacher is amazing and she helped me with the robot providing pieces and parts and offering me suggestions that were very helpful. She even did some welding! So to any artists out there that have time and know an art teacher I highly recommend visiting with a class or two and talking with the students. 

Thanks!

Something good, something new, and something sparkly!

So, we spend so much of our time thinking about, dreaming about, and romanticizing relationships. It has been a very strange year full of changes both good and bad. But I think that I've handled things well, ending a long relationship with someone is difficult, then you throw in children, lawyers, a house, money, and things get ugly....Time has passed and I feel so much better now than even a few months ago. And now that old things are done, the urge to start up again with a new relationship comes around from something that in my past would have been labelled as a "diversion" or "a waste of time". I've had the time to volunteer with a few organizations and it's been very helpful as someone that has been out of work for some time. It feels like a job, the people that volunteer with you are really interesting and they actually want to be there and make a difference, even though none of us get paid, it has been very uplifting to my spirits. I still continue to look for a permanent job but I now have several part time endeavors, as well as working on my art full time, because no matter what I do, I am a full time artist.
I was asked the other day if I liked what I did? Yes, I said. But that wasn't the truth. The truth is that I actually love what I do. It is an incredible experience to take pieces of steel and create something with my hands and then it gets better when other people like what I do and want it. One of my neighbors from Decatur contacted me and didn't know that I had moved, she was disappointed that the sculptures that I put in the yard where gone. That was one of the things about her walks that she really liked. To hear that was astonishing, because sometimes, I live in a vacuum and don't think that anybody likes what I do, but the reminders come in just when I need them.

So, now I'm off onto other adventures with art, humanity, music, love, food, and the completely unexpected turn that my life has made. And now I'm headed down that path again. Or is it up that path again?

Welcome back to the hinterlands, of my lost ramblings from the wilds of west GA. So, I've been wandering the junkyard, contemplating the beauty of the rolling landscape and spectacular view from the top of the hill. I was told that you could see all of the way the the Atlanta airport, along way. The junked cars that populate the landscape to be used another day in some other car/truck or maybe something else and the vast surrounding vistas is an interesting juxtaposition from where I am living. Any way some new clocks, 76 Dodge Aspen Hubcap Clock.

76 Dodge Aspen

The Cat is King

Once there was a cat that lived in a nice house with some very nice people. Now this cat thought he was the king of the household, when he Meowed, he got food. When he went to the door and meowed, he was let out, and when he was ready to come back in, he meowed and was let back into the house. He was fed, his litter box was cleaned, he had warm places to nap, and someone to scratch him on his back and between his ears, he was the king of the household. His people that he lived with knew it, he knew it, but the dogs in the neighborhood didn't know it.
The dogs in the neighborhood would chase him when they saw him and this would not do, this was no way to treat a king, especially when it interfered with nap time, sunning time, and resting time. What was a cat to do? The next day the cat woke up, meowed and was fed, meowed at the back door and was let out. He decided that he needed to figure out a way to keep the dogs away from his castle for he was the king, they just didn't know it. So, the cat laid in the sun and thought. He took a nap in the shade and thought. He cleaned his paws and he thought about what he could do to keep the dogs from chasing him. He was much too good to hiss at the dogs and clawing a dog on its nose never made things better, so he sat outside all day and thought and thought. Soon it was late so he went to the back door, meowed, and was let inside. He meowed and was fed dinner, Then it was time to lay on someone's lap and get a good head scratch, finally off to bed where he would wake up at 3 am and play with his people's feet, waking them up every night.
Maybe I'll finish the story later. Here's a cat that I made.

Ironic the Cat

Ironic the Cat

Robots

I've welded a few robots over the last year or so, the first was one that my daughter laid out on my welding table. They are fun to make and paint but sometimes I do get bogged down and cannot figure out a paint color, I mean they are supposed to be metallic right? The last one I wrote about was blue metallic, so I thought that red metallic would be good this time. Right. I went to 3 different places looking for red metallic, nope, they didn't have it, I had pictured this color based on car colors that I have seen, then it hit me, doooh!  The auto parts store. So to Advance I went and there I found the color. This red robot is monochrome, except for the spark plug.  Metalartdude's Metal Shop Robots

Take me to you Beaters

Red Robot

Mega Phone Robot designed by my daughter

A story and some new art work

Once upon a time there was a cat who lived in a very nice neighborhood, with nice people and lots of dogs. Now other than being a cat, this cat thought he was the king of the neighborhood.  A lot of the nice people liked to walk there dogs every day past the cat, and the cat would run after the dogs telling them to go away, this was his kingdom, dogs weren't allowed, and the dogs would leave with there owners, because they were on a walk. The next day the same thing would happen and the cat would chase all of the dogs down the street and yell at them to leave and the dogs did, mostly because they were on a walk and headed back home for some water and a treat!  
The dogs in the neighborhood were getting a little tired of the cat and being chased so one night they all got together to discuss what they would do about this problematic cat. All the dogs agreed that something had to be done but none of the dogs wanted to talk to the cat, besides they only spoke dog and didn't understand what the cat was yelling at them, they were just tired of him. Now, none of the dogs wanted to confront the cat.
"I don't want to get my nose popped by that cat", said a big Rotty.
"Cats are mean and they hiss and have claws that hurt", said a droolly Boxer.
"I'll do it", said a meek voice. "I'll do it", the meek voice said once again. And finally as loudly as he could a small Chihuahua said "I'll do it" and all of the dogs looked at the little one.
The next day on his walk the little Chihuahua walked by the cat and charged the little dog. The Chihuahua stopped and spoke to the cat, "please stop chasing all of the dogs, we are just out on a walk and don't mean to disturb you Mr. Cat, we just wish to be left alone." Now fortunately the Chihuahua spoke cat because he had be raised by a Siamese cat. The cat was shocked that the littlest dog had the courage to stand up to him the King of the neighborhood.
The cat said, "I will stop chasing you, I thought you dogs were trying to take over my neighborhood."
"No, no, no," said the Chihuahua, "we just want to walk in peace, smell the bushes, and pee on things."
After that day the cat watched the dogs walk by him and left them alone. The dogs were happy and the cat was still the King of the Neighborhood and now he was able to take more naps.
What does this have to do with my art? Not much. I've been working on a few letter from scrap metal, a new robot, and some new metal faces. Now if I could find a metallic red spray paint I could get that robot looking sweet!!!!! In other news I have a new gallery in Vining Jubilee, Inside Out Accessories, the owner sold one of my clocks as her first sale!  http://www.insideoutaccessories.com   
facebook page for Inside-Out-Accessories
The gallery in Decatur, HomeGrown is celebrating a year in business, this Friday, September 2, 2011.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/80809671/the-letter-o-original-wall-hangingThe letter O

The Big O

S

Of course it's A

Blue Robots, Granite, and the Pool

Being alone is an adjustment. I've spent the last few years with a very active child and now I only see her every other weekend. It's been a big change, we use to do almost everything together, lots of time at the pool, hiking granite outcroppings in Dekalb county, and trips to the playground.

I asked online about what color to paint something the other day, sometimes it just doesn't hit me like it usually does, and got no responses. I asked my good friend T and she suggested blue, not a color I would have thought of for a robot, needless to say I do appreciate it much. Being an artist in isolation, sort of is difficult, ideas need to be bounced off of others, suggestions made, and right now I don't have that. It's been an interesting change. So to T, I thank you for the robot is shaping up and the blue metallic paint is looking great.

Latest Adventures

Altoids Clock

These are a few things that I have been working on lately for my etsy shop, MetalArtDude's Metal Shop. An Altoids tin clock, a 72 Buick Electra 225 Hubcap Clock, and a Metal Dog, Rusty. Recently the gallery that I have work at in downtown HomeGrown Decatur was featured on the local news about local small downtown shops and such, there is a video on the home page for the gallery. They pass by an Altoids clock and a couple of robots that I made. So what else has been going on? I went to the sauna yesterday for 4 hours and it was free! Well, no the volunteer coordinator at the Newnan Habitat for Humanity Restore joked that at least we got a free sauna yesterday. The warehouse isn't air conditioned and the temps yesterday and today are in the upper 90's. I volunteer at the store and it's a lot of fun plus I like the mission of Habitat for Humanity. If you need any kind of building supplies, furniture, and more check out your local Restore because they do have quality items at reasonable prices, sometimes even brand new in the box items. So now onto the art and clocks.

1972 Buick Electra 225

Rusty the Springer Dog

Pluto

Rusty is a parts dog, much like my crazy little dog, Pluto.

Pluto and Shaft

So the little parts dog with the big ears, small nose, huge underbite, tiny stub tail, short legs, and a big dog attitude. His best friend is a white German Shepherd, Wolfie. Pluto thinks that he's the main dog and doesn't let Wolfie get the best of him, he's a tough little dog.