My Sculptors Life

My sculptors life began simply enough. During a family move from the country to the city in 2001, I was in charge of the garage clean-out and I spotted an unused welder in the corner of the garage. I inquired to my father in law Chet if I could "play" with his old welder. "No way", he said. "That's for my son Dayle", he continued. Dayle overheard Chet and said "I don't want that old thing".

That was my queue. "So Chet", I said. "I want it, so can I have it? You're not using it anymore." I received a scowl and a “humph”, but he reluctantly agreed and I promptly put that old welder into my truck.

I took the welder to the welding shop and had them check it out. They cleaned it up and told me it was fine to use. Now came the fun part!

What should I weld? I didn't have any metal lying around so I called by brother in law to see if he could help me acquire some. We went some metal yards and I finally found just the right piece. It was a flat sheet of steel and I was going to make a really cool sculpture from it.

Two weeks later I finally decided what I was going to make. "I will make a sign!" I said. I drew out the letters on the steel and began cutting. I was in LOVE.

I began experimenting with abstract form, dreaming up shapes I could cut and weld together in an interesting pattern. I played with pieces of steel that I found on subsequent trips to the metal yard. I "played" for hours making anything I wanted to make.

I started my website and posted photos of my sculptures, saying silently to myself, "People will buy these.”

I went on the internet to see if anyone was making sculptures like mine. That is when I discovered that what I was doing was called "direct metal welding". I dug deeper on the internet and discovered someone who was copying my style, a guy named David Smith.

Well this David Smith was copying many of my ideas and I was upset. A lot of his photos were black and white, so that was the trigger that told me that it was the other way around. I learned more about David Smith. I studied his work, read about his life, and my jaw dropped when I learned that he died in a motor vehicle accident.

David Smith is one of America’s most famous sculptors. His artwork is in hundreds of museums and private collections all over the world. He worked prolifically, was in galleries, and had many artist associates.

One of my goals is to become as famous as David Smith. I am working feverishly to establish myself in the art world. I am constantly striving to make my sculpture have a presence. I want my sculptures in museum collections throughout the world.

I currently have my sculptures in over 45 of the United States, one in England, and one in Switzerland. Most of my "Collectors" own more than one "OWEN" and many purchase more than one piece at a one time.

Many of my first time collectors discover me during an art event. With their mouths open gazing at one of my pieces, they immediately look for their significant other, keeping one eye on the sculpture. They appear captivated and dazed. Often they will say to me, "Where in the world did you come from? I haven't seen you before". This is my favorite time, when I am "discovered" by someone for the first time.

Being an artist, I had never been able to express myself as much as I do now with steel. I put emotion and dreams and random thoughts into all my work. I am often amazed when I step back and look at what I have created. I often get goose bumps when I finish a piece and prepare to photograph it, thinking ahead as to the moment that I will send out my email with a photo of the new piece - like a proud father.

I name my sculptures almost immediately upon their completion, usually a name that just jumps out at me. There are times that I have named a sculpture while I am still working on it. This is exciting because I then have a path to travel to its completion with a reference already attached.

I am constantly searching for discarded pieces of metal throughout the state of California, and beyond. I travel to metal yards with eager open eyes seeking that interesting shape or unusual color. Often I'll hold up a piece of found steel and see the finished sculpture in my mind’s eye. Sometimes I'll find a piece of steel and bring it back to my studio where it will lay in wait until I "discover" what it was meant to be - what it will become.

I love digging through my studio and finding some long forgotten piece of steel that I look at and say "I remember you! I found you at...”. There is a lot of excitement in my shop when I am working (playing). I'll get creating to music, be it classical or country. I'll hum along to the song without regard for time. There is no time to think of time when I am working, it all melds into a sculpture.

Sometimes I'll paint a sculpture, thinking that a color here or there will add a substance that I want to see. Like David Smith, I believe that my sculptures are also paintings, whether they are painted or not, and that my paintings are also sculpture - where does one end and another begin?

I do not tell anyone what to think of my sculpture. It is the viewers' personal experience. They may like it, love it, or not understand it at all. My sculptures are my visions, my reality, my mark on the world. There is not piece that is "made" with the thought of another, they come from deep inside me and erupt to life.

I'll often say, "I don't sell my sculptures, people buy them". I could never convince anyone to purchase one of my sculptures if the sculpture itself did not affect them in some way. No amount of salesmanship would do to promote my work to someone who did not find a piece they did not fall in love with.

I'll often envision a sculpture while doing something mundane, such as driving down a long stretch of highway. I'll jot down notes or scribble something on any scrap of paper available. Sometimes from a deep sleep I will bolt straight up, run out to my office and draw something I saw in my mind - these are often the most interesting of my sculptures, completely free from a thinking design - brought out from my unconscious mind.

I am getting bolder, bigger, and larger with my sculpture. Will that change the style of my sculpture or how I make sculpture in the future? Probably. Good! I love change and discovery; I love new thoughts and design. I believe that I have nowhere to go but forward and continue this vision of my life through the sculptures I create.

www.JeffOwenArtworks.com