Zen-Industrial: Ecological Sculpture and Furniture

New bee habitat works

2011-12-01T16:47:00.000-08:00

Hi.

Here are some new bee habitats. They range from 1 to 4 feet in length. Most are textured and burnt pine. The simplest piece is one I thought looked like an owl. I didn't do anything to it but give it "wings".

Mesquite vessel

2011-12-01T15:33:00.000-08:00

This piece combines a bowl and cutting board. It is made of a heavy piece of mesquite wood that was textured, burnt, and buffed with an oil finish. It's on wooden legs though it's not apparent in the pic.

New wooden vessels

2011-12-01T15:29:00.000-08:00

Here are some wooden vessels I made recently. The white one is made of a slab of pine and cut nails with a milk paint finish. The red one is made from a glue-lam beam and also has milk paint for a finish.

Bee and Lizard habitat bench for the AZ-Sonora Desert Museum

2011-11-22T19:44:00.000-08:00

Here is a bench I installed this week for the ASDM. It has a wooden seat for humans, a metal box of rocks for reptiles and vertical wooden pieces drilled with holes for solitary bees. The back of the box is open so the critters can go in and out. The front and right side have solid faces so no critters creep between people's legs!

New installations at AZ-Sonora Desert Museum

2011-04-14T11:10:00.000-07:00

Here's a couple of pieces installed in the Pollinator Garden at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. They measure a bit over 5 feet tall.

New non-functional work for April show

2011-03-26T23:11:00.000-07:00

Hi.

Here's a selection of pieces I'm taking to Practical Art in Phoenix for my solo show there in April. There is an artist reception there on Friday, April 8 from 7 - 9 pm. Stop by if you're in the neighborhood!

"Rift 3" Made of a split 14 x 2 remnant with steel decorations. Dimensions about 36" x 14 x 2.

"Wave" Burnt and painted Alligator juniper.

"S - curve" Textured, burnt and painted plywood. About 12 x 36 inches.

Untitled triptych Burnt, textured and painted plywood. Each piece 8 x 18 inches.

Untitled triptych of textured, burnt and painted plywood. Each piece about 8 x 18 inches.

New functional work

2011-03-04T06:51:00.000-08:00

I've come across lots of wood lately that's not good for benches or bee habitats, so I've been making vessels, coat racks and other stuff from it.

Here's a couple items made from mesquite. The coat rack wood is too worm eaten for furniture and was on the mill scrap pile. I sanded the face but left the rest natural.

The vessel, which is textured and burnt on the outside, was a chunk in my firewood pile. I felt it deserved another incarnation.

New, non-functional work

2011-03-02T18:58:00.000-08:00

Hi friends,

I'm creating some new, non-functional pieces for my solo show at Practical Art in Phoenix. The show runs the whole month and the artist reception is on Friday, April 8 from 7 - 9 pm. Stop by if you're in the neighborhood!

Below are a couple pieces that will be there. They're made from some dimension lumber scraps I found while in California. They'd split up the middle and that inspired me to make these two part pieces. I've got several more in production.

Hope you're enjoying spring. The weather in Tucson right now is heavenly!!!

"Rift 1" 24 x 13 inches

"Rift 2" 36 x 13 inches

Practical Art Gallery

2011-01-02T22:03:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!

I'm glad to start 2011 with several commissions, an art talk in San Diego, and representation at a great gallery in Phoenix. The gallery, Practical Art, features Arizona artists and sells only functional works. They've got a large selection of objects and are selling my bee habitats, mesquite vessels, and benches. See the gallery here.

The big news is that they've asked me to have a solo show there in April! I'll have a 35 foot wall space to show my stuff and some room for stand-alone pieces too.

I'll post information about the show and the opening reception when I have the details.

Thanks and all the best for 2011.

Greg

Latest works from recycled steel and wood

2010-11-12T20:13:00.000-08:00

Here are some recent pieces made of recycled wood and steel, plus a variety of found objects. They'll be for sale at the Tucson Open Studio Tour tomorrow and Sunday along with several benches that I'll photograph and add here too.

Most of these are wall pieces, but the mask piece at the bottom is on a yellow metal stand. The masks are from the Congo and are made out of a lightweight and very fragrant wood.

Equine (Sold)

Ikebana (Sold)

Zebra

Owl (or Fish if hung sideways)

Wedge

Mask (front side)

Mask (back side)

New triptych

2010-08-01T09:12:00.000-07:00

Here's my latest piece made from recycled wood. I'm working with shapes that are more angular and look like abstracted fish or owls. They can be hung vertically or horizontally for different effects.

These are wall pieces, so the backs aren't finished, but I'd like to do a series of them finished on all sides and mounted on a tall steel post with arms so you'd get the effect of a flock of birds or school of fish.

The finish is milk paint mixed with tung oil: it dries slowly, but is like granite when cured.

New installations

2010-07-11T22:40:00.000-07:00

Here's a few pics of bee habitat pieces at customers' places. The first is a multi-part piece on a steel base. The triangular base will be buried below grade, so only the upright wood bits and the tube bases will show. The uprights are textured and painted on two sides and dark wood on the others. They can be rotated to change their exposures.

The second pic is a pair of pieces made of pine, cholla wood, copper, and found bits. They're installed in a lovely private courtyard in the historic district of Santa Fe, NM.

New pieces from burnt wood

2010-06-20T17:30:00.000-07:00

Here's a few new pieces from salvaged burnt beams and recycled/found object steel.

The bench is 3 feet wide and can be drilled as bee habitat if the buyer wishes.

Wedge #1 (Sold)

Textured bench

Wedge #2

Garden

Recent piece with recycled wood and found objects

2010-06-06T11:00:00.000-07:00

Here's a recent creation. I've got several more on the workbench and will post them this week.

Wall piece with found object steel

2010-04-11T16:43:00.000-07:00

here's another one with found steel. i liked the abstract quality of this chunk of metal when i saw it at the salvage yard. just the right size too!

Recent pieces using copper sheet and found metal

2010-04-05T22:34:00.000-07:00

hi all,

these are some recent pieces using copper and found steel. the desert yields up some wonderful stuff. so do friends!

SOLD

Sold

"Universe" bee habitat sculptures

2010-03-17T12:06:00.000-07:00

hi friends,

here are three recent pieces that made me think space and the universe.

RADIO WAVES - SOLD

SKYROCKET SOLD

COMETS (Sold)

Bee habitat with cholla wood inserts

2010-03-09T17:21:00.000-08:00

SOLD

Here's a piece with cholla wood inserts and steel bits from San Simon, AZ.

Wall-mounted bee habitats

2010-02-17T15:04:00.000-08:00

Here are two new bee habitats that incorporate Congolese passport masks and metal I found in the desert.

The one with the tan mask is sold.

SOLD

New wall mounted bee nesting habitats

2010-02-09T13:50:00.000-08:00

hi all,

here's a few new ones. i'm working on a series of the mask pieces. i bought several congolese masks recently and like them for their spare but dramatic character.

the other is decorated with pieces of scrap sheet steel i found in the desert. it was a sign and i like the old paint.

Sold

SOLD

new wall mounted bee habitat pieces

2010-01-02T19:57:00.000-08:00

these are a few of the new pieces i've been working on. they are 18 or 36 inches long and 9 inches wide. the wood was salvaged from a burnt kitchen. not my house, fortunately!!!

SOLD

New bee habitat and art piece

2009-12-15T20:31:00.000-08:00

Here's a new bee habitat piece hanging on my wall and a piece I made for a customer for over their fireplace mantel. I'm doing pieces like the latter as hanging bee habitats too. They measure just about 3 feet long.

SOLD

New bench

2009-12-06T18:28:00.000-08:00

This bench was made of steel scrap I had from other projects. I think it turned out great: the frame looks like Chinese characters.

The colors don't show well in the photo, but it's got a green top and blue sides. I made another with a yellow top and white sides.

Wall mounted bee habitat sculptures

2009-12-04T20:47:00.000-08:00

I've been working on some smaller, less expensive bee habitats. The holes are drilled into the sides and don't show in the pics. The wood is too thin to have them on the fronts. They were textured with a chainsaw, burnt, scraped and painted or treated with linseed oil.

Prices on these run from $60 to $80. They are about 18" to 24" tall.

SOLD

Three new habitat pieces with milk paint finishes

2009-11-12T20:25:00.000-08:00

All Sold

New bee habitat piece

2009-11-10T18:13:00.000-08:00

Here's a piece I finished today. Recycled wood and steel with a milk paint finish.

SOLD

Recycled skateboards

2009-10-27T17:15:00.000-07:00

I thought you might like seeing this work by George Peterson of CircleFactory in Brevard, NC.
He is a wood sculptor and his work includes these wall pieces which are made of discarded skateboards. The textures are terrific. I'm working with him this week to learn more about texturing techniques for my pieces too.

More of his work is at: circlefactory.com

New bench

2009-10-09T18:33:00.000-07:00

Here's a new bench made of all recycled steel and wood. I burnt the wood then sanded it to bring out the highlights. The welded parts of the steel frame are still rusting, so the patina will even out over the next week or so.

It's six feet long and easily seats three people.

SOLD

Two new pieces

2009-10-05T13:09:00.000-07:00

Here's another bee habitat sculpture plus a table made from a found object base and the top of a gunpowder barrel.

Sold

Great post on native bees

2009-10-04T18:43:00.000-07:00

Check out this blog for more information on native bees!

http://buzzybeegirl.wordpress.com/

Native bees

2009-10-04T17:33:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics of native bees and the tunnels that they cap with chewed up leaves, resin or other materials. To be entomologically correct, the bees in the red flower are not a tunnel nesting species, they nest in the ground. But it will give you an idea of what native bees look like compared to honey bees.

My friend Anna is a bee expert and helped me with design for the little critters.

Yet more sculptures

2009-10-04T17:27:00.000-07:00

SOLD

SOLD (2 MORE AVAILABLE)

SOLD

Other bee habitat sculptures

2009-10-04T17:22:00.000-07:00

SOLD

Bee bench

2009-10-04T17:07:00.000-07:00

This bench has tunnels in the back of the seat for native bees. The bees are harmless and passive and won't hurt human users.

SOLD

"Lunar Lander" bee habitat sculpture

2009-10-04T16:58:00.001-07:00

This piece is made from found objects from the salvage yards and drilled with 1/4 inch tunnels for leafcutter bees.

"Tori Gate" bee habitat sculpture

2009-10-04T16:47:00.001-07:00

SOLD

Ecological Sculpture and Garden Furniture

2009-10-04T16:38:00.000-07:00

The sculptures I create are intended for use outdoors. I call my style Zen-Industrial because I use recycled steel and wood and my designs are influenced by Asian and Mid-Century aesthetics.

I create the pieces in my workshop in Tucson, AZ and can ship them to any part of the US. The bees that nest in the bee habitat pieces occur across the US, so they have ecological value anywhere.

Also see my website: www.gardeninginsights.com