$600 including 48 state shipping. Go to SHOP to purchase.
Cosmic Zoo #731106 original one of a kind wall mount sculpture. 11″ high, 18.5″ wide, 13.5″ deep (nose to wall). Durable, non-fragile fiber reinforced composite that is lightweight but strong, easy “keyhole” mounting on single nail or screw. I had fun making the eyes from scratch, they’re trippy, detailed…and a bit spooky in a dark room.
This is not meant to be any specific animal…rather, it is representative of the teeming animal kingdoms I imagine inhabiting many of the billions of planets in our own galaxy, as well as the countless planets in the trillions of other galaxies in our observable cosmic vicinity (about 28 billion light years out to Earendel) and beyond in the infinitude of space-time. I wonder how many animal-bearing planets also host intelligent animals like us, and what percentage of those intelligent species might have avoided imperiling their fellow animals when industrialization/civilization happened on their planet?
I made the slot on the keyhole extra long to help prevent accidental dismounts.
$885 including 48 states shipping. Go to my SHOP page to purchase.
“2020 Vision,” mixed media sculpture, wall mount, 21″ wide, 19″ deep, 12″ high. It’s a stylized rat, referencing the Chinese zodiac critter for the year 2020. Easy to hang on a single screw. Lightweight, non-fragile FRC (proprietary fiber reinforced composite).
30-1/2″ tall x 12″ wide, hammer formed aluminum, hand-set rivets. My original design.
Photos are of the actual rocket for sale in this listing. A real challenge to build from scratch; made individually by hand so is unique; patina never the same twice. Not sure how many rockets I will make…this may be the last or I may make more, time will tell. This is only the second one in existence of this size (the largest I’ve made or plan to make). [Edit: I ended up making 3 total of this size, all sold, no more available.]
My inspiration to make this rocket:
• I tried to imagine the “quintessential” rocketship design…and a very specific vision came to mind. I did a quick pencil sketch of it…
• Then I realized that, with the hammer forming skills I’d taught myself the past couple of years, I could actually *make* my idealized vision in aluminum!
• So I scanned my pencil sketch and refined the design in Inkscape (open source vector drawing application) on my Mac, and printed out trial patterns.
• My first experiment at rocket building was a fail… It was clunky, with inelegant overlapping metal sections.
• The next iteration, however, exceeded my expectations, bringing my inner vision of the “perfect spaceship” to life! The construction method (using edge-to-edge joints between sections rather than overlapping) was far more exacting and time consuming to build, but the streamlined result was well worth it.
• On a personal level, the payoff has been greater than the physical sculpture; it has been cathartic to focus on a fun, optimistic vision of the future for a change! It has helped elevate my overall outlook.
If you were to deconstruct this rocket sculpture, you’d find it’s made from over 60 individually hammer-formed aluminum pieces, into which I drilled about 800 holes, fastened together with ~400 rivets. Starting with my original design, I traced and cut out the 60 parts by hand, hammered them over various forms I made until they fit properly together, drilled the holes, then hand riveted the pieces together. For the patina, I tried to evoke a scorched, re-entry look and feel.
With high quality materials and craftsmanship throughout, this rocket sculpture will last for many generations. Signed on the inside of the fuselage exhaust bezel.
I envision it in modern homes, urban lofts, high tech environments, hipster offices, or retro / atomic style decor. It’s stable, sturdy, lightweight — easy to place on any table, mantel, shelf, desk, niche, ledge, or floor next to a fireplace etc.
I just love it…and I hope you’ll like it as well as I do.
23.5”h x 4.75”w x 4.5” d, wall mount. (Sculpture portion is 10.25”h)
One of a kind, handbuilt ceramic sculpture, hammered aluminum ears, mixed media; platform made from “rescued” old growth fir from demolished house in Portland. Mounts on wall via single keyhole on back.
“Wishful Prequel” because I wish we could re-write our collective backstory…I wish humankind could have evolved from a more peaceable gene pool! Yeah, I know…natural selection and all that…if our primate ancestors had been too peaceable I might be fending off a saber toothed tiger right now rather than bemoaning the state of the world. So I acknowledge this sculpture of an imagined peaceable progenitor is largely just an exercise in catharsis…but I hope it can also serve as a reminder to nurture and express our kinder, gentler, more peaceable inclinations as much as possible—in the real world we live in.
Or perhaps on other worlds out there somewhere in spacetime, intelligent civilizations have evolved from less belligerent genetic stock…who are innately more inclined to respect their fellow lifeforms and lovingly care for the planet they call home.
[currently hanging in our living room…contact me if interested]
24″ w x 29″ h original graphite drawing on Bee Paper Company sketching paper, 20% recycled content, neutral pH. Shipped in a mailing tube.
A satisfying step in my ongoing quest to loosen up…specific gains:
resisted usual urge to make everything symmetrical
“allowed” disproportion and non-realism
successfully avoided creating a likeness
to avoid “preciousness,” I rolled the paper tightly every which way to keep it from being “pristine,” and purposely “allowed” smudges, scribbles, erasures etc to remain
Which reminds me of a story: Decades ago in a class taught by Phil Sylvester at The Drawing Studio in Portland, I “won” a class competition for that day’s drawing session—and the prize was a large, expensive sheet of Arches drawing paper. Pristine, watermarked, archival, beautiful 100% rag drawing paper. But before handing it over to me, he tossed it on the floor and called over the rest of the class to enthusiastically stomp all over it…with the result you’d expect from a floor covered in graphite and charcoal dust 😉 So the real prize was the lesson, not the paper—a lesson I recalled with a grin as I utilized it on this drawing.
16″ w x 16″ d x 16″ h. Hammer formed metal, steel and copper wire, rivets, mixed media. Certainly one of a kind! Lightweight, hangs easily from a nail or screw. Not fragile.
Handbuilt, one-of-a-kind ceramic sculpture with riveted hammer-formed aluminum and various other mixed media. 24″h x 10″w x 9″ d, wall mount (with included bracket).
This one of a kind sculpture is another in my Cosmic Zoo series, intended to celebrate the ubiquitous arising of intelligent civilizations throughout time and space—infinitely in all directions, and infinitely backward and forward in time.
I could write pages about it, but basically I have this zany idea that there’s been a perpetually running Cosmic Art Show since, well, forever, where artists such as myself create art to enter in the show. No, I’ve never heard of this notion before, but if I thought it up, then countless others have thought/will think of it too, wherever they were/are/will be in spacetime.
This piece brings together many different media I’ve been developing for precisely such a purpose…to develop a “toolbox” of various light but strong, non-toxic, earth-friendly materials/methods that complement each other stylistically as well as structurally. And that are fun to work with!
This “alien” is one of the artists who had this same idea…kind of a cosmic curator…and although it’s impossible by the laws of physics for her to literally communicate with me, I still feel connected via logic and rationality to the multitudes of other artists participating in this infinitely long-running art show, who have arrived independently at this exact same notion and who created their own works to enter in this show.
I wonder if my entry looks like any of them?
I can’t put every last bit of motivation for this piece cleanly and completely into words…there is the idea of projecting thoughts infinitely in all directions…the infinite power of imagination…the similarity of ideas across space and time…identity with self-aware-intelligence rather than with the biology (or someday perhaps AI) that hosts it…well-wishing across the eons and parsecs to all other artists participating in the show…hope for each others’ civilizations to survive and thrive in peace, with a foundation of gratitude for the privilege of existence, and embracing the mystery that we are here at all!
Okay, this one is…”different”… [kinda experimental-ish…let me know if interested in purchasing]
We recently did a multi-room painting project, and one day while wandering around the Sherwin-Williams store waiting for them to mix our paint, we ran across this roll of thick, compressed chipboard…it’s kind of in between chipboard and masonite. Contractors roll it out as temporary flooring. It’s tough, and has good tooth for drawing. Admittedly, there’s not a lot of contrast…but I still like the result. It’s subtle but strong, if that makes sense… Might look good in a dark corner if the drawing itself is well lit with accent lighting. Or on any other wall if informal/understated is okay.
It’s 29″ h x 24″ w, graphite heightened with white carpenters’ pencil. Will be shipped in a mailing tube, easily flattened upon arrival.
I saw the “Use Printed Side Up” and thought yeah why not… I’ll likely do more drawings on this material, some on the blank side…maybe with a wash of something lighter to heighten the contrast. As you know by now, I love experimenting, so who knows…this might even be a fun raw material for sculpting…
“Untitled” — Wall mount, 12-1/2″ wide, 12-1/2″ tall, 18-1/2″ deep. Impactful in person. All freehand painted, one of a kind. Lightweight, easy to hang on single screw. Guaranteed to be unique within the Milky Way Galaxy.
BOPs are a new series of “Beacons of Positivity,” handmade by mixed media artist Steve Eichenberger. They are fun, colorful, non-fragile decor items for your mantel, shrine, niche, ledge, windowsill, shelf or table—plus they do double duty as cosmic energy appliances!
Now, I tend to be a fact-based kind of guy…but experience has proven to me that we can access literally infinite potential energy from the cosmos around us—and I’ve conceived my BOPs to draw in, concentrate, and re-radiate that free, abundant positivity wherever they are placed.
I make them individually from scratch, so each one is unique; I couldn’t make two identical to save myself! They may appear fragile, but they’re not…from initial concept onward, I’ve constructed them with durability in mind, to withstand minor household oopsies…as well as the inevitable jousts, jostles & jolts of shipping. If needed, clean gently with damp cloth. Not intended for outdoor exposure (but it’s your choice if you’re okay with them weathering). Hollow but sturdy, with graduated walls that are thicker toward the base to optimize balance…nice heft overall: not too heavy, not too light (approx. 1.5 – 2 lbs). They feel good.
Decades ago when art became a major focus of my life, I had no idea how revelatory a tool it would turn out to be—a vehicle for unexpected insights, an illuminator of mysteries, an explorer of vast inner realms—life enhancements that can’t be adequately communicated with words. BOPs are one physical manifestation of such inner experience, and it’s my hope they will serve as a catalyst for others to realize and utilize the limitless positive energy surrounding us at all times…literally as much energy as we can imagine!
One of a kind, handbuilt ceramic sculpture, hammered aluminum crown, mixed media; platform made from old growth fir “rescued” from demolished house in Portland. Mounts on wall via single keyhole on back.
“King O’ the Hill” is a reminder that all creatures deserve (or in this case command) our respect!
Handbuilt ceramic, hammer formed aluminum, 23K gold leaf, mixed media—one of a kind. Easy wall mounting bracket included.
Has to do with my musings about fellow extraterrestrials (perhaps even doppelgangers) throughout the infinite vastness of spacetime who similarly imagine me imagining them. What if one of them figured out how to burst in from another dimension for a chat?
19.5”h x 6”w x 4”d, wall mount. (Sculpture portion: 6.25”h)
One of a kind, handbuilt ceramic sculpture, mixed media; platform made from “rescued” old growth fir from demolished house in Portland. Mounts on wall via single keyhole on back.
Hang Fang wherever you need to be reminded to live out loud each and every day!
SOLD “Jester” is the newest addition to my “Cosmic Zoo” series. Handbuilt ceramic, hammer formed aluminum and copper, one of a kind. 10″ h x 12″ w x 10″ d, wall mount. Series is meant to celebrate sentience/intelligence arising ubiquitously throughout the infinite cosmos…of which humans are but one instance…an instance I am very happy to be a part of!
A notion has crept into my psyche that I’m not the first, only, or last artist in the cosmos to imagine my extraterrestrial counterparts coming to the same realizations and conclusions I have — namely, that time has always been and always will be, and that space extends in all directions without end…and that there have been, are now, and always will be an infinite number of sentient civilizations throughout spacetime. Some contemporary physicists go so far as to say we each have innumerable duplicates “out there.” I’ve recently been imagining these innumerable former, present and future “me’s” pursuing this exact same train of thought, and that we all had/have/will have this supra-cosmic idea: To host a perpetual intergalactic art show on the topic! (And they’re thinking about me thinking about them thinking about me thinking about them making artwork for this ongoing show…) It adds a whole new dimension to my experience; an existential camaraderie of infinite proportions. This inner thought experiment/experience has been changing my inner personal identity for some time now — away from “human/me,” toward “self-aware intelligence/cosmos”… Leading me to conclude, not just intellectually, but viscerally: “We are the universe, observing itself.”
One of a kind, ceramic wall sculpture by Steve Eichenberger
Riveted party hat made from repurposed aluminum. Easy to hang, via supplied hook.
This series has to do with the emergence of self-awareness and intelligence, not only on Earth, but throughout the cosmos. I’m fascinated by what it must have been like for the very first few early hominids to “wake up” within their minds… Was it confusing? Did it come and go? Did one or two individuals in a troop find themselves bestowed with intelligence while the rest remained animalistic?
Multiply this emergence times infinity throughout space-time… For how could time and space be anything but infinite in all directions?
But the speed of light is so slow and our existence so fleeting compared to the vastness of the cosmos, that it’s as if we are trapped in amber…making it statistically unlikely that we will ever have the pleasure of contemporaneously interacting with intelligent species from other star systems.
“Jasper” is a reminder to value our special existential awareness. It’s a big deal. The party hat is a reminder to enjoy the ride.
Handbuilt egg sculpture made from hammered aluminum with baked-on patina, fastened securely to an internal substructure with ~300 rivets.
It’s alive! It can keep its balance due to “shake weights” I put inside…by shaking it gently to adjust the internal weights, you can get it to stand upright by itself on any flat surface, as seen in the photos. The internal weights also help it to stay put so it won’t roll around.
This is one of the most challenging art objects I’ve ever made! First I made a full size version in wood, to which I carefully shape each aluminum section to fit the contours of the wooden form (aka buck). It’s definitely a one of a kind, because I cut the sections freehand, with no pattern or plan. Ditto for the patina — hand applied and manipulated — never the same twice. I stamped letters into the corners of each plate to help me put all the pieces back together again after the hot patina and burnishing stages.
This looks like an A.I. (Artificial Intelligence) egg to me! When will A.I. hatch? In my lifetime? In yours? [EDIT 2023: it’s here already!]
Whether we’re ready or not, A.I. is already incubating in minds and labs around the globe…and someday a digital entity will “wake up” and recognize its own existence…learning and thinking for itself…and with perfect recall. What will that mean for humanity? “Each of us alive today may be one of the last rungs on the evolutionary ladder that leads from the first living cell to synthetic intelligence.” (Susan Schneider, Univ. of Connecticut Philosophy and Cognitive Science professor, from article in Mar/Apr 2017 Nautilus Magazine, p. 25.)
Crafted with care to last for many generations — I used heavy gauge (.040) aircraft grade aluminum for the shell — so it will most certainly be around when A.I. makes its grand entrance into human history. And once something hatches, there’s no putting the hatchling back in.
This egg may not be sentient, but it still seems very much alive — in its motions, in its ability to hold a pose, the sounds it makes when shaken, and in its symbolism.
I think it’s pretty safe to say you’ll never find anything else like it! Jewelry for the home. Or office. Or take it with you when you rocket to your new home on Mars.
One of a kind, semi-abstract sculpture of a long-eared goat, complete with stylized goatee and flowing horns. This original, handmade piece would make a truly unique addition to your faux taxidermy collection. I employed centuries-old hammer forming techniques — stretching, bending, and shrinking metal by hand hammering against various anvil shapes — to shape the ears, goatee, neck carapace, and other metal sections.
16″ wide, 12″ high, 8″ deep.
Lightweight, break resistant; made with quality materials to last for generations. Easy to hang.
I enjoyed the process of inventing a way to make the horns. In fact much of my satisfaction in creating such pieces derives from the *process* of making…things an observer may never see or know about…such as the care I take in making the hidden wooden armature, or the sound of hammer on anvil while shaping the dozen or so aluminum sections before riveting them. In the end, I am rewarded with component shapes that match my inner visceral conception of them…shapes which flow together into a unified whole…form for form’s sake.
