Dragon – The dragon is mounted on a piece of Hudson River Driftwood which slips into an iron talon stand. Two steel bolts run through holes in the driftwood into tapped holes in the dragon’s feet. The tip of the wings are seven feet high. All pieces of the sculpture except teeth and horns are made of steel Sheetmetal, hammered into shape against carved impressions in an oak wood block, then torch welded together. Brass was fused to the horns and back waves and tail tip. foil reflectors are mounted behind the yellow glass eyes to make them light up golden.

Large lizard-like sheet metal coat-rack made to mount on a boxed in steel column in my office. The mounting brackets on it’s hands and feet give the illusion that it is climbing the column. Hidden hooks and the out-stretched hand provide mounting for hats and coats. It has floor standing posts to avoid the wall mounting if needed.
When a coworker and I were moved into an office in the back of one of the laboratories, I came up with an alternative to a standard coat rack. Having completed work on my dragon, I knew I could make a lizard do the job. I began cutting steel and welding. When the lizard was altogether and hidden hooks were in place, I moved it to my work office, and my coworker and I had somewhere to hang our coats and hats on. It looked great and management appreciated my creative building skills. I was placed on some design and build projects for test equipment that some other techs and engineers were having problems with. After a few successful builds, my manager was getting requests for my assistance from other departments. And it all worked out well from there. In fact my office was put on the tour route and was visited when outside companies came to visit.
Sometimes it seems, a large lizard coat rack can help a technical career. 🙂
Large Bird – The bird is made of Hudson River driftwood and steel brackets. It can be taken apart into six sections for transportation. It was inspired by various water birds who stand in the water waiting for their lunch to swim by so they can snatch it up. A supply of unused welding rod got me thinking of feathers, and I went on from there.
Motorcycle and car parts with an upward facing LED light ring to cast ceiling shadows. Custom made for a gift to a high performance car and motorcycle fan.
Motorcycle and car parts with an LED light ring casting upward shadows from the clutch rings arranged above it.
Fish-like driftwood with welding rods, with a wall mounting bracket attached
Forged rods with copper, brass and steel flowers straddling driftwood.
Three long pieces of driftwood with welding rod arrays, about eight feet long. One piece of driftwood has an embedded stone which looks like an eye, and a mouth-like opening below it
Forged steel rods with a small piece of
driftwood, inspired by beach grass.
Welding rods radiating from a common
center-point.
Welding rods radiating from a common
center-point.

Sword plant :
I remember growing up and my parents had many plants in the house. One of which was a sword plant. Flat green stalks grew straight up two or three feet high out of the large flower pot. Years later, cutting some strips of rusty iron for another project, I found that the left-overs were the shape of the sword plant stems. That got me welding them together following my memory for shape and size. I didn’t have large pot, but a had a beautiful large piece of drift wood that would make a solid base for my iron plant. I drilled a good size hole in it, lined the hole with piece of steel tubing, welded a thick piece of steel rod onto the plant and it fit fine. I had a iron plant sculpture with a solid driftwood base for it.