Knifemakers are artists?

M

merzy

Joined
Jan 21, 2002
Messages
6
We all know the answer. Yes! But I am interested in what other artistic pursuits you all have been involved in. I have found that most knifemakers have a real artistic streak in them. What other mediums have you tried besides steel?
 
Tried to draw, complete failure. Did some wax and bronze sculptures, turned out well, best was a buffalo skull. Did a lot of leather braiding getting over a wreck and making nerves work again. The braid work paid the bills. Made a lot of Navajo style silver jewlery. Carved a lot of wood mostly into smaller pieces, checking out knives.
 
What I do to steel I can`t be called an artists.
Guitar player, teacher & band memeber.
Custum gun building,but I like knifemakeing
the best
 
I have tried a little bit of allot of things.When I was in High School i won awards for my oil paintings.Tried stained glass,did allot of pottery,drawing,calligeraphy,I tried about anything i could get my hands on,but knives were always in my head,and at the time I didn't have the people around to help me even thugh I had made a couple of attempts from files...When woman came into the picture the clubs were in my head and so I learned to dance,even made it to NY and tried a audition on Broadway.Went home after that,not because I didn't get a job on the first try just because I wanted to say I did get there and tried.I even did get a license to be a manacurist and did sculptured Nails for ladies and even did allot of air brushing on nails and hand painting pictures on nails.And as my wife is my testimony I amstraight as a arrow..Boy did I have fun back then to as the other guys didn't like woman BUT I DID,lots of dates when I was single that way,Great place to pick up woman,in a beauty salon you know :D .
Boy I bet you guys think I am really weird now..
I did also do allot of country furniture style wood working,I did this for the longest of anything until I started the knives...

But I am now making knives and am just as crazy as ever..
:D :p :D
Bruce
 
Bruce,
Wow!, nail painting. You have some serious guts for posting that little tidbit.
I know this thread doesn't have much to do with making knives, but is about the artistic diversity of knifemakers.
merzy
 
Interesting question! Never thought about it before... I've tried my hand at silver jewelry, had quite a long stint binding books, have made some crude furniture and a few boxes, made dozens of kites (one takes a car to hold it down), but mostly worked with metal. Had a great collaboration making an alien armilary, and made a copper bowl that I'm pretty proud of. Oh -- and a futuristic suit of samurai armor...

Dave
 
Before trying my hand at knifemaking I spent the past five years doing ceramics. I have made and sold thousands of functional pots and also tried a lot of experimental pieces and processes.

I have dabbled in graphic arts. I apprenticed fulltime for a blacksmith doing ornamental ironwork for a year. I have made sculptures and jewelry out of a variety of materials including ceramic, titanium, silver, copper and gold. I have spent 16 years working in people's houses and businesses hanging their wallpaper and doing decorative painting as my main avocation so I guess you could say that my whole adult life has been about art.

I never painted fingernails but I did try ballet for a semester in college. Hardest damned class I ever had and definitely a great way to meet women! ;)
 
Heck I am not embarrased or ashamed about being a manicurist,Actually with a wife and two daughters I can be real popular on the weekends doing there nails for them..
I made the best money I had ever made when working in the salons..
The kicker to that job was the fact that i also did the ladies nails on the side out of the salon,I got to set up in the dressing room at one of the biggest All female strip clubs and do the girls nails between ther sets and breaks.Now for a straight single male,That was about as close to heaven as you could get.I had lots of lady friends and escorted allot of them out to the other clubs to have fun Dancing the night away,usually there would be two or three that wanted to go out and I would be like ther buddy and body guard if someone started any sh$%%% I would take care of it.
Yes I did even try Being a Male Stripper for a time.Now that got you woman..
I think I have done allot of crazy things in my life,Glad I settled down and just make sharp pointy things now..:D
Don't think bad of me guys,I was a wild and crazy kid when I was younger..

Like I telll my oldest Daughter"If you can't be good,Then Be good at it.And be proud enough of what you do to be able to tell people that is what you did"

Bruce
 
Bruce,Bruce, Bruce: I think that is a little more than we needed to know. I just got a visual of you forging in a G string. Hey!! maybe you should do a calendar for the ladys. Title Forging my way to happiness in a G string by Bruce Evans.:D :D :D
I am not as talented as Bruce, but I do all the airbrush and hand painting on my Harley and Indian.
 
Way out of shape to something dumb like that now,Don't want to scare anybody...
Guess it will just be something everybody can pick on me for now..
Like I said I did it and can't be ashamed of it..Guess everything I did led me to making my knives and I wouldn't change it if I could..
Bruce
 
Hey George Just visualize Donna in a Thong and leather apron forging for me and that will knock that ugly picture out of your head fast..
Boy do I wish I had that picture for myself anyway..
Bruce:D
 
Man if she did that I couldnt work on a knife for awhile if you know what i mean,I might hurt myself:p
Bruce
 
We all know the answer. Yes!

You haven't looked at any of my knives!!!

I led a really dull life compared to bruce. I braided leather (mostly whips), built custom rifles, discovered black powder and started hanging around the gunsmith at Williamsburg and built a few BP rifles. I started making swords because I couldn't afford to buy good ones aand then discovered that if you cut off the sword blades that got screwed up, you had a knife.

Then I got here and made a couple of damascus pieces and now I guess I may try to do some artsey work!

George, you sure know how to ruin a day. I'm never going to be able to look at Bruces picture on his logo again.:D :D :D
 
Guess I won't live this one down now will I .
Buty heck were else can you have 100 drunk screaming woman throwing Dollar bills at you.I could make in excess of $100.00 in three minutes.Were else can you do that..(no I'm not that weird there were no guys allowed except the dancers and waiters!)
At least I had fun when I was younger and won't be looking back when I am older and say what if!
Heck I could have done allot worse you know..
George that would hurt by the way..:eek:
Guess I better change my Picture over to a knife picture now..
Bruce
 
I play guitar as well as dabble a little in a few other instruments. Played a a few bands over the years released a few albums/CD's etc. Did some touring here and abroad. Also, went to an art school when I was younger for Commercial Art and Illustration but I wanted to do cartooning. Later worked in mechanicals/illustration/technical drawings for a well known trade school and Culinary school both owned by the same company here in NYC. Also studied a couple different Martial arts. Yet all the while still playing music. My rendering abilities turned turned toward knife designing a few years back, then like two years ago I said "screw it !, I'll just make my own knives" so I started doing that after buying a little cheap equipment. It's slow going but I got the hang of fixed blade making, I hope to do folders an d Balisongs some time in the near future. Interesting reading all the different things folks here can and or have done. Take care.....RDT
 
Very interesting indeed. I too play guitar a little and have done lots of woodworking in the past. Mostly furniture and decorative chip carved/inlay boxes. Never really considered myself an artist though.
 
Last real job as a Business Analyst for a computer company.

Financial Analyst, Assembly Engineering for products containing 20,000 parts (copiers), Wholesale Jewelry Manufacturer (9 years), Chief Engineer on a Tugboat, Railroad mechanic.

Now trying to find money behind cactus and under rocks in the desert, and learning Architectural Blacksmithing.
 
I am a reformed Musician:-)played lead guitar in a bluesy rock band out in the Hollywierd scene if you can believe that. It was lots of women, lots of fun, but it got old after a while (Yeah I know even harder to believe).. Also went to college for sound engineering, but someone has to die and leave you his job in that biz.. Making knives definitely is a creative outlet for me..
Between making it in music, and living with my wife and son making knives, its a no brainer for me, gotta get out to the shop and make some more knives!!!

Take Care
Trace Rinaldi
www.thrblades.com
 
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