Metal Bed Frame

The second part of my Triptych went through a lot of changes during the ideation process. I started out by looking up images from the industrial revolution and sketching from there. I ended up playing around with imagery of a large industrial chimney. Wanting to represent industrial times.

Though I liked the chimney and thought it would be an interesting form, it was hard to connect it with my other two parts. It was a great representation of the industrial revolution, but it didn’t really convey the main feelings or ideas I wanted the viewer to get from it.

I ended up changing it to a bed frame, which was a lot more intimate object, making it easier for the viewer to establish a relationship with the piece. To save time, as well as make the form more visually dynamic, I decided to not create the whole bedframe and went with a more broken design.

I started by looking up the measurements for the average twin bed and drew them out. Then once I had my measurements, I cut out the pieces and began welding.

I started with the MIG welder, tacking the smaller pieces together like the legs, and top part. I then welded the longer pieces together, and then tacked the walls to them and the tacked the legs, and top to the main body.

Once the body was put together I took the welding torch and used it to warp the edges to make the metal look older and damaged. With the main part of the frame done, I took some chicken wire, and cut it to fit the bed, then also damaged it to look ripped and broken. To anyone looking to use chickenwire in a project, I recommend getting some garden gloves, as it will slice your hands to shreds.

With the main part of the frame done, I felt it was a bit hard to tell what it was, So I created a metal pillow with the leftover chicken wire, and also created another broken piece of the frame to imply the missing half.

I then took some salt and a spray bottle and created a saltwater mixture. I also created a salt paste and covered the entire frame with it. Then every couple of hours I would wet the salt paste again with the saltwater mixture. This began to rust the metal. If I was to change something, it would be to start this process sooner so that it would rust a bit more. The good thing about it though, is that it will continue to rust as time goes on.

Overall I like how this part came out, the choice to switch away from the chimney to the bed frame, I ran the risk of a less dynamic form, but it paid off because the bed frame ended up working with the other to parts, and was easier for the viewer to connect with.