Visual Art – Boise
“About five years ago, I decided to buy a welder…. A friend gave me the basics; showed me how to turn it on, how not to get electrocuted, & so forth… The next few months were full of frustration, learning, tears, a few small fires, & lots of “experiments.” The search for inexpensive metals to practice on eventually led me to the local salvage yards where I discovered a whole new world, full of industrial inspiration & new possibilities… I was immediately drawn to the gears, bearings, pipes, chains, etc: especially the big heavy ones, covered in grease! Eventually, the guys at the salvage yards stopped giving me weird looks & started pointing out the cool stuff right when I walked in (the cool stuff that no one else wants : )
From there, it’s grown; bigger & heavier pieces of steel & gears: larger sculptures & public art projects, big trucks, cranes, & more salvage-ing! I started picking up copper & stainless steel, concrete, glass, wood, & other elements to add into new designs & experiments: up-cycling has become a big part of my work. I enjoy the process of giving a new life to something that has been abandoned; looking at things in a new way; & combining unrelated materials into something new.\"
J. Amber Conger