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Welder Artfully Transforms Steel into Textured Sculptures Celebrating the Power of Ordinary Men

David Madero uses welding to construct his large-scale and dramatic works of art. Sculpting under the name Madero / Co., he transforms smooth pieces of steel into highly textured creations that highlight themes of power, determination, and the strength of ordinary men. His artistic imagery regularly features dynamic creatures, gestural figures, and subjects at odds with one another. There's an element of tension in every sculpture–whether it be visually or conceptually–that makes his pieces both awe-inspiring and exciting.

Welding, in its earliest forms, dates back to nearly 300 CE and was first used in the construction of buildings. Madero reinterprets this ancient craft with his emotive works, elevating welding to express raw, artistic beauty, which is best shown in one of his newest pieces–a bearded skull created for Jack Daniels, whose facial hair twists and turns into a bubbling appendage that gives the inanimate bone a life of its own.

Madero and his team capture the welding process through short videos on his Instagram.

Madero's incredible portfolio of work also boasts larger-than-life sculptures.

Madero / Co.: Website | Facebook | Instagram
via [Reddit]

Sara Barnes

Sara Barnes is a Staff Editor at My Modern Met, Manager of My Modern Met Store, and co-host of the My Modern Met Top Artist Podcast. As an illustrator and writer living in Seattle, she chronicles illustration, embroidery, and beyond through her blog Brown Paper Bag and Instagram @brwnpaperbag. She wrote a book about embroidery artist Sarah K. Benning titled 'Embroidered Life' that was published by Chronicle Books in 2019. Sara is a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art. She earned her BFA in Illustration in 2008 and MFA in Illustration Practice in 2013.
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