We were lucky to catch up with Martin Pierce recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Martin thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

The learning curve has been long and sometimes bumpy. I was always interested in nature and enjoyed physical work and being dyslexic was a terrible student and found studying a real pain. My school had 3 good courses, art, woodworking and metal work. I was drawn to woodworking and began carving at 12. I don’t think it makes sense to look back and over analyze wrong turns or wish you had done things differently. I found my skills developed through practice and focus and picked up new abilities as needed. When the foundry I was using burned down, a lot of my original sculpture patterns and molds were lost so I decided to make my own molds and pour my own waxes and limit the foundry to pouring metal. When Anne began writing our blog, she wanted pictures of work in progress so I got a decent camera plus advise from a photographer and began taking my own pictures. That said I am a mediocre photographer and for professional shots depend on my talented friend Maria Ramirez-Adams.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My career can be seen in segments, starting as a freelance for hire sculptor in England, then moving to Los Angeles where I carved mahogany doors and cabinets in the Art Nouvea style. From there I created a collection of limited edition furniture pieces and learned the art of japanning and began toying with casting small bronze cabinet handles. The latter resulted in an extensive line of door handles which I still make in stainless steel and bronze. My current focus is the insect story I am creating in bronze and steel, and this is where I have a lot of fun. The plot line involves small insect loving humanoids who co-exist with large insects and together build houses and even compete in the annual insect race.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

As an apprentice wood carver, I learned to carve quickly and precisely, skills that made me a useful employee but also a prolific artist. I have had to learn to create with purpose and to understand that if my art is channeled into a business, I am not an untethered free spirit but must consider why one design versus another is worth making. My wife is my mentor and business partner, and we bounce ideas between us. I draw well and can quickly sketch a bird or insect and have filled at least 50 sketch pads. Rather than turn all my ideas into sculptures, I now exercise restraint and let the idea settle to come back to later, sometimes I come back to a sketch I did 20 years ago and improve it and sculpt it in wood or hard wax. Case in point, I have returned to sculpting large than life insects and am creating a fantasy world in bronze where they peacefully co-exist with diminutive humanoids and forage for mushrooms and apples. When I first sculpted the “Hornet on the Apple” I did so in Yew as a standalone sculpture. Now this sculpture exists in bronze and is part of a story line Anne and I are writing together. It took years to be able to cast in bronze, but the time has not been wasted rather it has allowed the tale to mature into a themed collection of bronzes.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

We left an easy existence in Lewes, England with a stable income and relocated to Los Angeles with minimal planning, little money, no connections but 25 wood chisels and a plausible story line for immigration. On arriving we found a cheap place to rent, I built a bench in the yard and sculpted an animal chair with hooves and ears in maple. We quickly found the Pacific Design Center and another design studio, Bobi Leonard and began making Palm tree and bird inspired beds. Leaving England was pivotal, the timing was good, the city then welcomed you if you had skills, resilience and an English accent that helped open doors.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.martinpierce.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/martinpiercehardware
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MartinPierceHardware
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@martinpiercedecorativehardware
• Other: https://www.martinpierce.com/art/sculpture https://www.martinpierce.com/art

Image Credits
Maria Ramirez-Adams