My two dimensional steel art came about from my desire to do steel work that can hang on a wall.  Most people have more wall space that they can dedicate to art than they do flat surfaces to set a sculpture.  Some of the pieces combine a two dimensional steel figure with a photograph that ties well with the subject, and others are multi-layered steel backgrounds with the subject.  Colors on the steel come from heat treating, acid wash patinas, or rusting with chemicals.  The all steel pieces have a rugged look that would be perfect in a man cave or Western themed bar.




"Up The Canyon II"
When camping on my favorite river, our favorite portion of the river was 'up the canyon'.  It was a narrow canyon where the river was a series of waterfalls and deep pools.  Beautiful stretch.  This is my second rendition of my impression of the falls, pool, and trout.  It is all steel in several layers, separated by enough that one gets a semi-three dimensional look.  The size is about 16x20.
Picture


"Colors of the Solstice"
Painted steel plate mounted on a photo of a spruce tree in my yard after a nice little snowfall.  The cardinal is approximately life sized, and the overall dimensions are 12x17.  Because red and green are the colors of 'the season', Christmas cards of cardinals and evergreen trees have been a standard for decades.  Since the timing of the Western celebration of Christmas is based on the multi-cultural celebration of the solstice, I  titled this piece  with reference to the larger world view.
Picture



"Rocky Mountain Bison"
This piece is an example of my steel on steel 2-D pieces.  All parts of this piece, from the central figure of the bison to the sky in the background, are 18 ga steel plate, colored with acid patinas or heat.  The steel elements give this piece a definite 'rugged' feel, which would fit very well in a man cave or a Western themed bar,
Picture
"Blackfoot Valley Swans"
Conservation efforts, changes in public attitudes, and improvements in habitats have combined to help the populations of trumpeter swans in western Montana.  For several years there has been a pair of swans raising their families on a pond beside Highway 200 a few miles east of Ovando (Montana).  They raised another family of four this summer (2017).  I took this photo of the pond in the fall of 2016, and mounted this representation of a pair of swans.  The overall dimensions are 12 x 17 (generally the overall dimensions are about 12x17 because my printer is limited to 13x19).
Picture


"Defending His Territory"
A male red-winged blackbird, as many birds do, will stake out a territory and defend it against other birds.  This piece represents such a scenario.  It is put together from painted steel plate mounted over a photo of a small pond north of Helmville, MT.  I ask for a bit of forgiveness for artistic license; the territory defense would have happened in the spring, whereas this photo was obviously (from the looks of the cattails) taken in the fall.  But it all looks good together.
Picture




"Grizzly on the Front Range"
This is another steel on steel piece.  Although the mountain range in the background is not an actual part of the Front Range, one can imagine the mountains behind some rolling hills where a grizzly bear has wandered.  Again, the colors come from a combination of heat coloring (in the sky) acid patinas, and rusting agents.  Overall dimensions are approximately 16 x 24.
"Father and Son-Eagles on the East Ridge"
On my birthday in August, my partner and I took the bus to the East Ridge above Butte to see the statue of "Our Lady of the Rockies".  Being a metals sculptor, I was really into the structure of that amazing statue, but it was, of course, so much more.  While there, I took advantage of being at such an altitude to take some photos of the rock formations below me.  I felt like I was a bird looking down on these cliffs, and not many birds besides eagles would be soaring above cliffs at these heights.  This piece represents an adult and a juvenile bald eagle riding the thermals surveying their domain while us paltry humans look up in envy.
Picture
 


"Untitled" Montana Horse
Okay, I haven't come up with the perfect inspirational title for this piece.  But hey, I love horses, so we will let it go with Untitled.  This is a steel image of a horse mounted over steel layers of hills, mountains, and sky.  The coloring comes from rusting agents, acid patinas, and heat coloring.  
Dimensions are approximately 17 x 17.