This pitchfork has seen its hardworking days on a farm, but it was time for retirement. It now homes my family. My son Luke wears shorts and calmly clings to the left side; my daughter Tess hangs upside-down to show the gymnast that still lives in her; my daughter Casey is happy to hang out in the middle of everyone; my wife Michelle spots her children from the comfort of the bottom prong, and I watch my family from above as the climber and thrill seeker.

Photo by Joe Shults

At my childhood home, my mom still maintains one of the prettiest gardens I’ve seen. When she wanted a unique piece to add variety to her garden art, I took the opportunity to experiment with stone. I sourced a 50 pound rectangular rock from the Ohio town in which she grew up, and I painted it the face of it black. I cut the Kokipelli figure into a vinyl mat that would be strong enough protect the surface of the rock, placed it on, and sandblasted the entire face of the stone block. This resulted in the raised, dark figure that you can see pictured to the right, with-standing the test of time and weather.

This was created for a good friend of mine in celebration of her late husband’s birthday. She had found left over boxes of tools, materials, and trinkets in the garage that felt too personal to throw away. Instead, the items are housed forever in this resin mold - so that those who loved him can have a glimpse into the life he led.

My wife Michelle LOVES giraffes. She loves their spots, long necks, and goofy tongues, so this is a piece I’d been wanting to do for a long time. The picture shown was not my original vision - like many projects, the first iteration didn’t feel right. I knew Michelle would enjoy the quirky nuts and bolts more than the other side, which is a silvery melted mixture of them. It’s a good thing I didn’t do it to both sides! Many of the “ingredients” of this piece came from familial sources.

Its neck and body are made from my dad’s old crow bar.

Most of the nuts and washers are from my personal stock.

The little antlers (called ossicones) are Hex bolts from Cincinnati Milicron.

Her eyebrows and tail are leftover metal shavings from my drill press.

The tail is freight banding that was used for shipping wood from Russia (no family ties there).

The legs are rebar.

Photo by Joe Shults

In 2006, I was at the Verdin clock & bell factory and felt very moved by the history and insight into bells. Before the “rings” that we now hear from our cellphones, bells were responsible for calling people to meetings and church services, warning of fires and emergencies, and playing beautiful melodies. It is because of the bells’ significance that many people, upon their passing, would donate their wealth to the church to fund new bells or pipe organs.

The donors’ names would be displayed on the items, only to be lifted into the bell tower or set in the organ - and never seen again. As the bells rings, the clapper inside becomes distorted and forms a dent where it strikes the side. When this void becomes too deep, the springs fail because the clapper must travel too far to make a sound. During the factory visit, I found myself drawn to save this beautiful, worn clapper from being thrown away

Clapper was discarded from a thousand-pound bell made in the early 1800s.

The nut and washer supporting it above are from an even larger bell, dating back to the 1700s.

The wood base at the bottom is slightly deteriorated maple, finished to seal its moment in time.

The glass pieces were to prove that fragile individuals can support something great and heavy as an organized community.

I made this piece to display what I felt was the heart of a bell, let its donor live on in art, and challenge the uncommon feat of combining metal, wood, and glass into one cohesive piece.

Photo by Joe Shults

The silhouette of a buck who has been weathered by the elements.

This was for a family friend whose son wanted a deer in his room for Christmas. It’s made from flat, cold rolled steel that I hand cut with a plasma cutter. I accelerated the rust using a mixture of salt and water, then clear coated it so that it could never change.

With the deer, his two siblings also received a wolf in a similar style and a more animated Mickey Mouse cut from diamond plate steel.