Meet the Artist
Shelly Durica-Laiche
SCULPTURE/Metal Work
Shelly Durica-Laiche is a metal sculptor who uses primarily reclaimed materials. She creates trellises, plant stands, landscape art, freestanding sculpture and furniture. She finds pieces in scrap yards around the state, takes donations, and finds metal objects on the side of the road. MIG welding is her primary tool to attach steel. An oxy-acetylene torch is used for brazing mixed metals. Shelly also uses reclaimed beads of glass or plastic and incorporates them onto sculptures using cold connections.
She’s inspired by the unique shapes of these found treasures. Sometimes she knows right away what she wants to build while other times it takes years of contemplation. She’s driven by the design challenge of transforming these recognizable objects into an assemblage with a new voice. The parts lose themselves to create the whole. Shelly wants the viewer to be surprised by how a material is used in an unconventional way, far removed from its past life. The process is magic to her.