Anthony Hansen

I am a metal artist who works solely with objects and materials that are found and reclaimed. I enjoy the process of taking something that has been discarded, put aside and giving it a new life with a different purpose. All of my work centers around the use of automotive sheet metal. Most of this is found at the dump, wrecking yards and the random auto body shop. When I go on a mission for materials, I am mostly looking for color. Bright colors, faded and peeling paint, rusts and metallics are all fair game. These pieces are collected and taken back to the studio where the next step in the creative process begins. I feel each piece of metal has a story, a past, that is meaningful. To preserve this authenticity, I leave the original colors intact. Each piece is contructed using various techniques including riveting, wiring, folding and welding. A lot of the fun for me is putting random colors together in an attempt to jar the norm. Hopefully you will see something different. Each piece is then coated with a clear enamel. Not only does this halt the weathering the materials have gone through, but also ties the piece together in a consistent finish.