Private Commissions by artinsteel
The main bulk of my work is made to private commission.
People generally approach me with an idea that they would like making.
We will discuss exactly what they are looking for and the techniques that I use. A time consuming and very satisfying process that often has surprising results especially for me.
My job here is to listen and help the customer turn their ideas into a reality.
My favourite jobs are those where the customer is not exactly clear what they are looking for.
First example
Oliver wanted to hide his 'hideous water butt'. I suggested making a sort of screen to surround it.
This was not what he was after, eventually he decided that a giant stainless steel triffid would make a garden feature and hide his water butt. A new one one me but I set to work.
Both of us were delighted with the resulting sculpture.
This is my favourite area of work as I have to be adaptive and creative in realising another person's ideas and giving them something they will be happy with. I feel that I have the easy part; I only have to make the piece; while they have to live with it. I am happy reworking ideas and even modifying sculptures as they come together. There is a great pleasure for me in achieving something the customer wants in their living space
Another example
A lady was looking for a lifesized sculpture of a concert grand piano for her husband; a well known composer of film soundtracks. After a lot of toing and froing between us we came up with a design for him. The end result is that he now sits in the garden playing his virtual keyboard as he writes his music. I confess to being quite scared of this one as I have never even touched a piano. But after measuring lots of them I managed to get the keyboard perfectly to scale. We were both intrigued by the way the piano almost designed itself into a art deco style
I even made it with an opening lid and removeable legs for transport
A few years ago I was asked if I could make a sculpture of a giraffe as an anniversary surprise for a lady who wanted a pet giraffe as a child she; thought they could be kept in a hutch like rabbits.
Her husband I had a long chat and came up with an idea. I used random shaped loops to creat the skin pattern hard work for me to achieve the randomness on the skin but I was very pleased with
her.
The image below shows a detail of the structure. Note how i was able to imitate nature in having a degree of true randomness in the structure
Front legs inspired by Naomi Campbell. Pictures were taken just after starting the rusting process
One of my strangest commissions was to create sculptures out of the customers mothers hip and knee joints which were reclaimed from the crematorium.
An interesting and sensitive job, cue an hour looking at and laying with the components.
Eventually we came up with Tinkerbelle the fairy and a kneeling man to work as a phone holder
Tinkerbelle even flies
I was so pleased with this idea that I managed to rescue my Mum's knee, she did promise it to me when she had it fitted.
Below we have Tinkerbelle in action in my studio and knee joint phone holder
Last here is my Mum's knee joint made into a small critter; a nice reminder of The Old Bird
These few examples are just a few of the works I have made to commission, pretty much any subject is possible if you have any ideas do please contact me. Nothing is too off the wall for me.