Full of Hot Air: Steel Inflamations       

          The pieces displayed in the Wikoff Student Gallery present my ongoing interest and experimentation in the process of inflating steel. This technique has opened many doors for my art as it enables me to achieve a unique style as well as support the basic blacksmithing and fabrication aspects of my work.  To an extent, the chase is better than the catch: I get more pleasure out of the process than the final product.  While I often start with a specific vision in mind, some of my pieces need to grow as I work on them and and begin to materialize a final product.  Perhaps borderline abstract at times, my art represents conflict, humor, the surreal, and a love of the craft.  But personal interpretation is more important than what I think.  I hope people will ponder and draw their own conclusions about my work.  So relax and enjoy.

Marty O'Brion Jr.

Reflections of Emotion

          These steel figures were welded in the shape of the male and female gender.  Their positions and postures are displayed on specifically cut mirror that allow for their reflection to support the emotion they aim to exert.  I coordinated the placement of the steel to show just exactly how the human body can present an assortment of attraction to another human of the opposite sex.  These poses were crafted by me actually sitting, crouching, and laying on the floor in these positions to get the proper body arrangement and balance.  Once I scaled a perfect size for each part of the body, the figure had to free stand and work accurately to achieve the feelings I wanted each piece to create.