Metalcrafting art

[Michael EllsmoreParticipant @michaelellsmore56676]

What's the most fascinating piece of art made from metalworking that you've seen? I thought of this question after I came across this collection of fantastic statues that have been made for Sustrans, and installed on footpaths and cycleways across the UK: **LINK**

Some of these are genuinely stunning (I love the idea behind the portrait benches), which made me think, that there has to be other metalcrafted pieces of art as spectacular as this. If you know of any, please let me know, thanks!

[Michael EllsmoreParticipant @michaelellsmore56676]

[MICHAEL WILLIAMSParticipant @michaelwilliams41215]

Hi Mike E ,

Bit of a problem of definition here –

There is metalwork which is contrived to be ‘ art work ‘ as such and functional metalwork which achieves artwork status by its perfection of design and manufacture .

In my own experience many of the parts and assemblies found in the Aerospace industry are things of great beauty .

Best object that I recall having have seen is an Olympus 593 standing shiny and new in the assembly shop and waiting to go off for fitting in an equally shiny new Concorde .

Apart from the external beauty that an interested layman might see for himself there is an extra beauty to those that have some understanding of engines which comes from knowing that almost everything in that engine is almost perfectly designed and made .

A more emotional item of beauty is seeing the sun again through the fantastic metal tracery of a deep mine pit head gear . You would have to experience this to understand why the sight is so moving .

You’ve raised an interesting subject which I have thought a lot about over the years .

Regards ,

MikeW

[Anonymous]

Mikes right that there is so much out there to see and admire depending on perspective and knowledge that becomes art in the eye of the beholder….but if I could have one work of metal art that could be displayed at home it would have to be this one by Mark Ho. Shame I could never afford it

**LINK**

[Eric CoxParticipant @ericcox50497]

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. A few years ago I went to the Royal Acadamy summer exhibition. One item on display was a 15ft stainless steel receiver tank that had been collapsed under vacuum and had a few bits of scrap welded to it. They had the audacity to call it art. The asking price was about £40K.

[Sub MandrelParticipant @submandrel]

A family favourite is the Brownhills Miner

Neil

[NilochParticipant @niloch]

I will not even attempt a definition of art but I have been guilty of buying both two and three dimensional original art works for forty years or more. All I care about is that these works appeal to me and continue to give me great satisfaction. They have been bought because of this appeal as opposed to any perceived investment value.

The Royal Academy Summer Show has been mentioned, I don’t think my wife and I have missed one for a dozen years or more, similarly Art in Action is high on our list of visits every July. I’m pleased to say that we own some works by at least half a dozen Royal Academicians not because they are RA’s but because their work appeals. We have even visited the studios of two RA’s and bought work at a discount.

Open studio events have increased tremendously in popularity in the last decade or so, they are a fertile ground to discover what does and what does not appeal to your sensibilities. It is not difficult to develop an ‘eye’ for the better quality work and to buy before an artist becomes popular and prices increase once they are taken on by a gallery (or galleries).

Ceramics and glass are amongst the 3D work that appeals; there are shows which cater for the ceramic collector, several British potters being held in high regard.

Commercial glass such as LaLique and Baccarat will always be popular but one has to understand that each piece is one of thousands despite the high prices. The London Glassblowing Centre (Google) is a fascinating place to visit as it is a working and selling studio/gallery; the furnaces ensure that even on a cold day you are nice and warm.

In the earlier posts of this thread there is some emphasis on the ‘best’ work of art and I guess ‘sculpture’ is the genre being considered. Not so long ago my wife and I had the pleasure of visiting the Yorkshire Sculpture Park, wherein, there was a ‘retrospective’ of the work of the Spanish artist Jaume Plensa. The work that I remember the most is this one:

**LINK**

In the YSP installation the gongs were in the form of a circle in a room where light was very much subdued and padded mallets were provided for the ‘viewers’ to tap the gongs. Their size and curvature was such that each one made an individual noise of low frequency, all very magical. Generating these innovative and new installations/ideas is what great art is all about.

The icing on the cake for us was to be able to buy in the YSP shop a limited edition print by Plensa at an acceptably low price.

[Robert DoddsParticipant @robertdodds43397]

Does this guy in Australia qualify? He seems to have found a good use for old and unloved spanners!

http://wheelnroundworkshop.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/the-spanner-man-john-piccoli.html

Bob D

[Martin WParticipant @martinw]

Hi

While not model making I think that these videos show metal craft as a true art form. They are 13 minutes each but the end result is truly beautiful.

Hope you like them and the finished result.

Cheers

Martin

[Gordon WParticipant @gordonw]

Many years ago I was given an alloy con-rod ,polished and mounted, (off Manx Norton I think) beatiful thing. It whent walkabout, I still miss it.

[Author]

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