Creativity is My Comfort Zone
When I was a kid, the thing I loved to hear my dad say most was “Make me a drawing.” If I wanted to design a dollhouse, I’d make a sketch, go get the plywood, and he’d see to it that I could use the tools.
When I was a teenager, this led to joining a 4-H club dedicated to welding in my community. While the guys in the club were there because they were looking to apply their welding skills at a commercial trade, I was looking to understand a different process I could use for making art.
Years after learning how to weld in my small hometown, I picked up the hobby of aerial dance. First aerial silks, then lyra. I wondered what it would be like to make my own lyra. I bought tools and took rigging courses to learn safety – producing dozens of steel hoops for Nashville aerialists. I began to create a wide range of shapes and symbols, exploring creative expression through metalworking. And yes, I dance on them too.
