I know that sounds hard to believe when you're looking at a lionfish with intricate stripes or a magnolia branch with petals that look like they might move in a breeze. But that's the part I love most about this work. Stainless steel is rigid, industrial, and honestly pretty stubborn. It doesn't want to curve. It doesn't want to look like anything other than what it is. And my job is to convince it otherwise.
All of my metal wall art is handcrafted from 100% stainless steel and colored using only heat from torches. No paints, no dyes, no coatings. The blues, purples, golds, and silvers you see are created by carefully controlling the temperature of the flame on the metal's surface. The hottest point produces blue, then as the temperature decreases you get purple, then gold, then the natural silver of the stainless. It's a process that requires patience and a bit of stubbornness of my own, but the results are colors that will never chip, peel, or fade because they're part of the metal itself.
My process for each metal wall sculpture starts with reference photos and sketches. I study whatever creature or plant I'm working on until I understand how it's built, how it moves, where the light hits it. Then I start cutting. Every piece is hand cut, shaped, welded, and ground. For something like my dragon sculpture, that meant cutting and shaping over 1,500 individual scales. For an orchid, it meant figuring out how to make rigid steel look delicate enough to pass for a flower petal. Each piece is its own set of puzzles, and honestly that's what keeps me coming back to the studio every morning.
One of the questions I get asked most is whether these metal sculptures can be kept outdoors. Most of them can! Stainless steel is naturally weather resistant. It won't rust, corrode, or degrade in rain, sun, or humidity. I have pieces that have been hanging outdoors for years and they look the same as the day I finished them. I note on each piece whether it's outdoor safe.
I work out of my studio in Durham, North Carolina, and every sculpture is an original design. I don't use molds, casts, or CNC machines. I don't outsource any part of the process. From the first sketch to the final grind, it's just me, my grinders, my welder, and my torches. That means every piece has small variations and character that you'll never find in mass-produced metal art. A hand-ground feather detail on my hummingbird won't look exactly like the next one, and I think that's what makes them feel alive.
Some of my most popular metal wall art pieces are the butterflies. I have nine different butterfly wall art sculptures in the collection, from monarchs to swallowtails, each with its own coloring and wing pattern. Metal butterfly wall art is one of those subjects where the heat patina process really shines because butterfly wings are all about color. I can lay down vivid oranges, deep blues, and iridescent purples that look remarkably close to the real thing.
Whether you're drawn to the sea creatures, the flowers, the insects, or something else entirely, I hope you enjoy browsing. And if you see something that speaks to you or you'd like to commission a piece, please don't hesitate to reach out. These are my favorite kinds of conversations.