Featured Creation
What is This Hunk of Twisted Steel !?!?!
What? I didn’t have my usual recently completed project this month. What the heck is going on? Well, I have a Huge commission in the works that will take a few months to complete, so I don’t have a recent piece to share with you this month. But rest assured, I will have a few awesome projects to share with you in the coming months.
That twisted piece of steel you are seeing is called a pineapple twist. In an effort to continue my journey of creating unique pieces of art, I am always trying to learn new skills and techniques to incorporate into my craft. I had an opportunity to take Roy May, AKA The Dirty Smith’s, Introduction to Blacksmithing class at Dragon Forge LTD. Â
The class was about building things by hand, the “old-fashioned” way. Using a coal forge that was powered by a hand-cranked blower, an anvil, a hammer, and a blacksmith’s vise. I spent 2 days learning techniques on how to hand forge many items, from decorative Aspen leaves and functional twisted coat hooks to this cool twisted piece of steel called a Pineapple twist. There are more pictures from the weekend on my Instagram account if you are interested @benham_design
The final day was learning how to use a power hammer, the only power tool we used the whole weekend. I had a blast and highly recommend the class.
I’m still accepting commissions for the End of Summer 2019 if you would like to commission a piece of custom furniture or art. Just head over to my website for details.
Upcoming Exhibitions
May 2nd – 5th
9am – 8pm Thursday – Saturday
10am – 2pm Sunday
Black Forest Community Center
12530 Black Forest Road
Colorado Springs, CO 80908
This show is hosted by the Black Forest Art and Crafts Guild, a portion of the proceeds goes to a college scholarship fund, which is awarded annually to a local graduating high school senior.
I will not have any furniture in this show, but it will feature my scrap wood projects. I gather up all the scrap wood left over from my furniture projects and build cribbage boards, cutting boards, boxes, and whatever else I can think of. It has been a great way to clean up the shop, raise some money to fund other art projects, and help send a young mind to college.
Featured Artist Night at the Hunter Wolff Art Gallery
Friday, September 6th 2019
Time TB,D it will be in the afternoon/evening
Hunter Wolff GalleryÂ
2510 W Colorado Ave,
Old Colorado City,
Colorado Springs, CO 80904
Throughout the evening, I will be there to answer questions, show off my art, and demonstrate my process of hand-inlaying butterflies or bow ties into a table or benchtop using a mallet, chisel, and hand plane.
Stop by, buy some art, sign up for a commision, or say hi.
I know, this is an old video, but with all the design work from last month, I did not have the time to edit another video. But please go back in the archive and watch one of your favorite projects. This is one of mine. Not only is it a cool desk, but it was commissioned by The Hunter Wolff Art Gallery, which supports many great local artists in my community.
I’m the owner of Benham Design Concepts, a mixed media art studio where I design and build custom furniture and other works of art using wood, glass, stone, and various metals.
In this blog, I talk about the art I create, my journey, and the things I learn along the way.