Commissioning New Work

Every Project Begins with a Conversation

Many of my pieces begin as commissions. Some are one-of-a-kind, site specific installations, and other designs may be re-created or re-imagined as new commissioned pieces. They show what is possible when a new piece is designed specifically for a person, a place, or a purpose. 

Every commission starts with a conversation about what you’re looking for and why you've come to me specifically.

Sometimes it is as straightforward as needing a handrail for the front steps, or wanting a special table for a particular spot in the home. 

Some conversations begin quite differently:

"I've admired your work for some time, and I'd like to have something you've made in my home. I just don't know what that thing is…”

Together we explore possibilities until the right project begins to emerge.

Over the years I've been commissioned to create gates, fireplace screens, mantels, kitchen pot racks, wedding candelabras, display cases for treasured objects, and purely sculptural pieces. I welcome unusual challenges and am always happy to discuss potential new projects.

Understanding the Place

In that initial conversation, I’ll ask about your tastes and preferences. We might discuss the architecture, the surrounding landscape, or any existing furnishings the finished project ought to harmonize with.

How the piece will be used or otherwise encountered in your daily life will very much be a part of the conversation, and very much in my mind as work progresses.

With enough basic information to start, I can often provide a ballpark cost range before we move forward.

Where appropriate, I'll visit the site to take measurements and better understand the setting. In other cases, photographs and dimensions supplied by the client are sufficient.

From Words to Drawings

My design process only starts when I have a clear understanding of the practical limitations on the project—its function, its location, and its essential proportions.

Then there will be many sketches, doodles and notes jotted down that will most likely never be seen by anyone but me. Only when I feel a design has matured into the strongest solution do I prepare a finished drawing for presentation.

That drawing forms the basis for our further discussion. We’ll discuss the design itself, options for different materials and finishes, projected cost, and anticipated schedule. Any necessary revisions become part of the continuing design process until we're both confident the project is ready to move off the drawing table and into the studio.

Making it Real

Once the design has been approved and the project deposit received, work begins in earnest.

Forging, fabrication, fitting, and finishing may take weeks or months depending on the complexity of the commission.

Throughout that time I'll share my progress and, when necessary, arrange additional site visits or test fittings to ensure the finished work will be exactly as intended.

Completion

The final stage involves delivery and, if necessary, installation. I install with the same care that goes into designing and making. When we’re done, an entirely new object will have been brought into existence — envisioned and created specifically for its place and for the people who will live with it.

Please don’t hesitate to inquire about new projects or variations on existing designs