This article ran on December 1, 2011 in the Moscow-Pullman Daily News talking about public art in Moscow, Idaho.  Read the full article online.

Moscow Public Art Finalists: Art for the Masses

Three in running for public art project commission

By Alan Solan, Moscow-Pullman Daily News staff writer

Next year at this time, a tiny park at the south end of Moscow will be home
to a new piece of public art.

Three Northwest artists are finalists for the $35,000 commission. The
Artists submissions will be posted on Dec. 10 and will be available for public
comment. The three finalists will make their artist presentations 3-5 p.m. on
Dec. 16 at Moscow City Hall, and the public is welcome and invited to attend.
On Dec. 17, the selection committee will choose the artist for the Wren Welcome
Garden project.

The art will be placed in the Wren Welcome Garden, a quarter-acre park that
forms the southern gateway to Moscow’s downtown business district. The site is
on the north side of Jackson Street, adjacent to Gritman Medical Center and two
blocks from the University of Idaho campus.

The three finalists for the commission are Chris J. Wrench, of Hood River.,
Ore.; husband-and-wife team Jennifer Corio and Dave Frei of Vancouver, Wash.;
and Robert M. Horner of Port Townsend, Wash. » Continue reading…

I love metal when it is richly oxidized, either by the slow force nature or by a much quicker patina process.  Earthy tones are in right now for sure; people love rust, antique bronze and the oil rubbed look. One client wanted large vessels that looked like they were “just pulled out of an old barn, forgotten for decades”.

But I have discovered COLOR.  Light, bright, shiny color.  We live in the Pacific NW where the sun only shines for 3 months…if we’re lucky.  It’s rainy.  It’s dreary.  It’s why so many here suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (and it’s called SAD for a reason).

We could all benefit from a little more brightness in our days, and this is why I have incorporated color into my sculptures.

We achieve our color by powder coating our sculptures, carefully choosing from a dizzying array of hues & textures. The technology has changed tremendously from the days you could only choose from a few basic colors. Powder coating can now compete with lacquer in terms of color variety, plus it’s a greener choice because it contains no solvents. This allows us to keep true to our commitment of treading lightly.

» Continue reading…

There are endless ways to add unique touches around your home & landscape with decorative metal work.  I’ve listed 50 ways here and I’m keeping a running tab.  Leave a comment with your own ideas and I will add it to the list.

Interior Architectural

• 1.  Staircase railings
• 2.  Staircases
• 3.  Loft / balcony railings
• 4.  Hand rails
• 5.  Light fixtures
• 6.  Doors
• 7.  Room dividers
• 8.  Fireplace doors
• 9.  Mantels
• 10. Cabinet doors / door panels

Interior Decor

• 11.   Metal art & sculpture
• 12.  Fireplace screens
• 13.  Decorative planters, vases, vessels
• 14.  Privacy screens
• 15.  Mirrors

Furniture

• 16.  Dining tables
• 17.  Accent tables
• 18.  Chairs
• 19.  Stools
• 20.  Bed frames
• 21.  Loft beds
• 22.  Pots & pans racks
• 23.  Storage racks
• 24.  Shelving

Exterior Architecture

• 25.  Porch I& deck railings
• 26.  Hand rails
• 27.  Screen doors
• 28.  Awnings
• 29.  Metal accent siding
• 30.  Window grilles
• 31.  Window well guards
• 32.  Decorative down spouts

Yard, Garden, Landscape

• 33.  Garden art & sculpture
• 34.  Garden gates
• 35.  Driveway gates
• 36.  Fences
• 37.  Arbors
• 38.  Trellises
• 39.  Planter boxes
• 40.  Retaining walls
• 41.  Planter beds
• 42.  Fountains

Hardware

• 43.  House numbers
• 44.  Door knobs & pulls
• 45.  Switch & outlet covers
• 46.  Heat registers
• 47.  Decorative hooks
• 48.  Curtain rods
• 49.  Towel bars
• 50.  Mailboxes
• …plus lots more!

I’d love to hear your ideas.  What have you dreamed of having in your home or garden made of steel, copper, bronze, aluminum?  Ideas for mixed media — metal & wood, metal & glass, metal and….?

We are thrilled to be featured in North Bank magazine’s winter 2011 edition.  The magazine focuses on Southwest Washington’s emerging urban lifestyles.  Thank you to the magazine’s editor Jessica Swanson who did a wonderful job capturing the essence of our custom metal work business and where we are heading. 

Read the full article:  North Bank Magazine features Cobalt Designworks (pdf)

In late October Dave and I set off in a 22-ft Penske truck for southern California to install our latest two sculptures in two different juried exhibitions.  First stop San Diego where we installed our piece Sprouted Bumbershoot in the Urban Trees 7 exhibition.  » Continue reading…

Come late October when the rains have started here in the Portland area, Dave and I will be catching a little sunshine in Palm Desert, California. That’s where we will be installing our latest large scale metal sculpture Shapely Two. The piece was juried into the 2010-2012 El Paseo Sculpture Invitational along with 17 other sculptures from around the nation. The art will line El Paseo Drive, adding even more dazzle to the town’s glitzy shopping district. » Continue reading…

Who’s going to let a little rain stop them? Not the new woman in town in Bremerton, Washington.

Dave and I recently delivered our 6-foot sculpture Despite the Rain to Pam Bykonen, Arts Commission clerk for Bremerton and our main contact for the project. » Continue reading…

Dave and I view our business as an extension of who we are, so it only makes sense that we extend our passion for sustainability to the work we do.  Cobalt Designworks contributes to the health and well-being of Mother Earth in a myriad of ways:

• Our heirloom-quality architectural metalworks will last for generations.
• Metal is one of the most recycled materials on earth.  Steel has the ability to be re-used or recycled repeatedly without degradation in quality. » Continue reading…

Just one of the benefits of doing custom metal work is the wide variety of cool projects that come our way. 
Our friend Russell is the master baker behind “Russell’s Breads“.  He makes beautiful artisan loaves like these:

» Continue reading…

Many of you have been keeping up with our driveway gate project  for owners of a new lavender farm in Woodinville, WA (Woodinville Lavender).  We recently installed it and wanted to share pictures of the final work of art. 

The steel frame is powder coated with a faux rust color texture. The steel panels have an “antique black” chemical patina. » Continue reading…