metal on metal

I love going to local places and buying things like, say, a huge water storage tank and asking questions like, "Will we be able to drill holes in it easily?" Making a film, and a lot of the art out here, has led us to taking normal, everyday things and turning them into something completely different. The only strange thing is trying to figure out what will work without sounding like a maniac to the person we are buying supplies from... I remember going to the local hardware store once and asking for the smallest screws they had. When they asked what they were for I answered "A puppet." Sometimes it goes over well, sometimes we just lie so as not to get caught up in explanations, other times people are eager to problem solve along with us...this brings us to today's adventure in steel plate buying!

We needed to get some steel plates for the wax cylinder  piece which led us to a local Iron Works shop. The place was an amazing metal working compound of sorts; giant brick warehouses surrounding a small lot with a patch of grass, massive prototype I beams welded into formations all over the place, portraits of custom curvy metal banisters lining the lobby, stacks of metal waiting to be molded or melted or cut. It was pretty amazing! I think it's what the inside of Richard Serra's head must look like! Luckily a friend of a friend worked there so he knew what we were up to right away:"Art!" he said smiling as he picked up the heavy metal plates and loaded them into our car. Whew, another awkward materials conversation avoided!