Textiles, Blacksmithing & Metal Art Year-End Show & Sale

I love reusing materials and mediums. It has always been a part of my art, but definitely been enhanced in metal. Each year, roughly 19.2 million tons of metal is wasted, calculating to only 6.6% of our total waste generation. That’s still so much material! The possibilities are truly endless, and rather unfortunately, so seems the wasted material. One man's trash is truly, another’s treasure. 

I was a rather clumsy kid, so I learned very quickly how muscles connect and all the bones because I was hurt so often. Biology mixed with art, and here we are! This will be the first piece in what I hope to become a full set of different parts of the body from metal. 

My work investigates the crux between the real and the imaginary, the useful and the useless. 

Blacksmithing is a craft medium known for combining utility and beauty, lending to a medium that satisfies both tool and art making. This is reflected in my knife work, where pattern-welded steel creates unique and intricate patterns within the blade, resulting in visually satisfying objects that are comfortable to use.

In addition to metal work, I have a strong drawing practice that employs a myriad of media, such as watercolour, pencil crayon, ink and graphite.

 Borrowing from fairy tales, urban fantasies, and mythical creatures, my drawings revolve around themes of the Monstrous Feminine, surrealism and the uncanny. It investigates emotional responses to desire and consumption, and the feminine consumer rather than the feminine consumed. This aspect of my art challenges the functional qualities of blacksmithing and works to subvert the sturdy and static nature of steel. 

By introducing these contradictions into my metalwork, I have embedded my work with a sense of life through movement. My focus has been on creatures–both real and imaginary—and recreating their lifelike nature with deceptively delicate and intricate details. 

Moments from getting up and flying away, my sculptures are trapped by the reality of the medium in which they were created, forever frozen in immovable forms.

I began my journey into metal artistry as a teenager, with introductory metal fabrication in high school. 

Encouragement from peers and family to chase what I enjoyed introduced me to an environment full of opportunities, and possibilities.  

My focus is medieval armour design and manufacturing, using a blend of materials and inspirations from both historical pieces, and fantasy design. I research and prototype pieces that will provide functionality, quality, and an artistic touch, to provide my audience with a unique and engaging experience into armour and costuming. I primarily use steel and leather, but often hints of brass and copper. I often use recycled and restored materials to manufacture my pieces, providing a more unique sense of workmanship.

For a long period, I have enjoyed the possibilities for what clothing and armour could appear and function as, how it moves and articulates with the wearer. I have also enjoyed the idea of quality design and fabrication, making pieces that would last for a long time, and provide the user with proper protection and comfort. I have a continued interest in the field of medieval armour and continue to study designs and ideas from around the world, as well as attempt to create original pieces with my skills and knowledge.

My artistry has great importance to me, namely my family and peers who continue to support me with my work, and the struggles that accompany the journey. Many of my designs and inspirations come from my heritage and nature, with use of animals, and European designs, such as Celtic knot work and nordic runes. 

I like surprising myself with projects that I didn’t know I could do. Having the ability to learn and iterate is important to me.

I am drawn to the magic and possibility that comes from just being in a workshop. 

I am both the maker who problem solves from concept to creation and also the viewer who can look at and hold a finished piece and think “Cool. I wonder how that happened?”

I choose to work with metal above all other materials because I know its limits, its potential, and how far I can push it in either direction. 

This balance inspires my ideals of anti-obsoletion, sustainability, and reclamation, and the modern method of blacksmithing is at the core of why I make art: to ensure the survival of an ancient art form in the name of progress and preservation.

Thematically my pieces are meditations on evolution, stagnation and decay, particularly surrounding the natural and accelerated aging of metal. I craft my pieces with the intent of utility and expression to encourage curious onlookers to touch the art, because my pieces are incomplete if they exist perfectly preserved—they must be weathered and aged from the elements and the oils of a person’s skin, their appearance affected as much by everyday forces as by the artist. 

Closing the gap between the art and its audience brings texture and action to a world that grows increasingly under-stimulated and passive, encouraging the continuity of humanity’s appreciation for art by way of collaboration.

Rooted in a family legacy where art intertwines seamlessly with skilled trades, my journey unfolds against the backdrop of master carpenters and stained-glass artisans.

Raised in an environment that nurtured creativity, my early inclinations flourished into a love for metal art. With welding, I began sculpting my dreams into intricate forms of metal, a fusion of technical prowess and artistic vision.

My artistic intent transcends the confines of a singular medium. With the wide array of expression through portraiture with acrylic and oil paints to blueprint design and construction of metal sculptures, I strive to create balance through elements like Light and Movement consistently. My goal is to challenge the norm and create a multi-dimensional encounter for the public when interacting or observing my work through adding dazzling textures such as stained glass and translucent plastic. 

My work is an invitation to explore the rich tapestry of human experience and it is a testament to my individualism within the societal mosaic, an immersive experience that invites others to embrace the transformative power of artistic enlightenment.

With my work I search for the limits of material and form. This is informed by a respect for process and strong need for detailed work. With this combination of process and detail-oriented work, I can effectively communicate my ideas.

My ideas come from a place of marrying the creative and technical. The creative and technical combination comes from my background in architecture and fascination with metal. The qualities of metal allow me to explore techniques and get creative with what I can produce from that.

Ultimately, my work is an expression and physical representation of my exploration of material.

Our home is made up of many parts and there are none quite like the sanctuary of our bed. This is where we pass half our time in slumber, in grief, in love and family. It holds our dreams, exposes our nightmares and lets us integrate each and every day’s teachings. Often, we neglect to care or give thought to this sacred space. I believe it to be equally deserving of beauty and our attention; somewhere we have the luxury of staying awhile.

I wanted to create timeless elegant pieces that could enrich this space with thoughtfully sourced fabrics and designs that could blur the lines between day and night. 

Being from a rural community in Eastern Washington, my exposure to varied arts and culture was somewhat limited. While it's slightly unfortunate that I didn't have spades of galleries and museums in close proximity to me, it has made me very curious and excited by things outside my norm of cows, rolling hills and windmills. 

I developed a real interest in clothing through sneakers. It was an international hobby and passion of people who come from dramatically different blocks of life all shared. I think having things you are drawn to, love the look of, and uniquely represent who you are, is very important. 

Having the opportunity to create unique items that represent who I am has been incredible. I am excited to show my work because it is a really fun way to communicate my passions and interests and I'm excited to continue making things that bring myself and the people around me joy.

I have always been incredibly inspired by nature, so having the opportunity to create a collection with natural dyes has been amazing. 

I initially started with designing a print with mushroom caps on female bodies, and then felt drawn to the femininity of flowers and the beauty within their colours—and from that came my female bodies with flower heads. I chose to make dungarees as, to me, they symbolize a playful and childlike nature, and with the colourful flower print and light fabric, it makes for the perfect summer outfit. 

Natural dyes come with their challenge of not always been consistent and sometimes there’s some unwanted surprises in the colours or how even the fabric dyes—it’s been such an incredible learning curve for me to embrace the imperfections, surrender to what will be and make the most of what these amazing plants can allow us to produce.

During the times in my life when I have created with intention, I have consistently struggled with the deeper meaning of what I am doing. The desire to be read as profound and interesting has both motivated me to make things and also been the reason why most of said things haven’t seen the light of day—they haven’t been important enough to put my precious name on.

This year for me was about letting go of ego, keeping things simple, and finding inspiration in what was in front of me. I made pieces centered around the first designs that popped into my head, or based on a picture I took out the window. If a mistake was made, I just pushed on rather than starting again. By not worrying about the final result, I was able to turn my focus to the feeling of the process. 

I will always remember and hold dear the hours I spent making these pieces—even when the physical works are sitting in a crawl space somewhere. They’re all just samples, right?

Art is dumb
Art is fun
Art will set ya free

Graham's garment is worn by Alden Bothamley.

My clothing production line is a reflection of my deep connection and admiration for the ocean. 

Inspired by fluidity, and the unpredictable and beautiful ways of the Pacific Ocean, I aim to create garments that make me feel special through a careful selection of fabrics, dyes, and colours. I seek to capture the movement of waves, the play of light on the water’s surface and the kelp dancing on the sea floor. 

Ultimately, my production line is a tribute to the beautiful coastal town that I called home prior to Nelson and a celebration of my personal style. It is my hope that by wearing my designs individuals can feel confident and comfortable in some my one of a kind pieces. 

From a young age, I have been a keen observer of the textile world, but my passage to participation started in a medical setting. 

Born in England and growing up in an academic environment, my early love of textiles was put aside to pursue nursing. Working in a fast-paced, central London hospital led to the degradation of my mental and physical health, provoking me to pick up a needle and thread as therapy.

Over time, I taught myself new skills and moved to Canada to leave my career behind. Volunteering on small, organic farms here opened my eyes to my unsustainable ways, and spearheaded my need to promote slow, sustainable fashion.

The key to sustainability is making high-quality items that people love. I hope to do this with my collection through joyous prints, timeless styles and dopamine-inducing colours. 

From childhood, I've been captivated by textiles in all forms. Now, embarking on my first foray into the arts world, I've delved deep into the world of textiles, learning invaluable techniques and approaches that I will take with me into my future endeavours.

For my year-end show and sale, I'm proud to present a collection of handmade shirts, dresses, felt hats, and headscarves. Each piece is made through methods of either hand-dyeing, printing, wet felting, or weaving. Drawing from my Hungarian heritage, my collection celebrates the vibrant traditions of the folk clothing and design from the region. All prints are inspired by Hungarian embroidery designs and the silhouettes are taken from both Hungarian and Russian garments.

In weaving together, the functionality and style of traditional folk clothing with my unique taste, I aim to connect fantasy with reality. Learning the traditional methods for making felt, clothing, and cloth is not just a skill—it's a connection to the magic of the past, a way of bringing tradition back into the modern age. In reviving these age-old techniques, it connects us to our cultures and predecessors allowing us to live as people have for millennia.

Through my work, I hope to give the wearers of my garments the feeling of living in a fairytale, that day to day does not need to be mundane and static. This collection is intended to breathe a bit of the lost world back into us.