A broken car visor would lead to a creative passion...
In 1997, Steven made a random trip to a Pick-n-Pull salvage yard in San Jose, CA to replace his car's broken sun visor. At the salvage yard he saw endless rows of abandoned old cars from the past and marvelous looking car parts half buried in the dirt. The parts resembled something from the stars, with their celestial forms and intricate engineering, and had a story to tell. This was the "ah-ha" magical moment! Although he knew very little about their automotive functions, he could envision their artistic purposes. Steven wanted to give new life to these treasures that would otherwise rust away in the junkyard or be melted down for scrap. He took a trunk load of parts home and began creating and selling his car part clocks and lamps at car shows and art festivals, while work in property management for nearly a decade. He became one of the first artists to create clocks and awards from recycled car parts. In 2003, after a great response from an article featuring his car part art in in the San Francisco Chronicle newspaper, Steven took the leap to pursue his business full time.
A blitz of press and expansion into recycled gifts and functional art for high tech and other industries...
Steven's one-of-a-kind creations went on to be featured in other major newspapers and magazines, shown on TV for the ESPN GM King of Bling and American Pickers, made for the major car company CEO's and celebrities such as Jay Leno, Jeff Gordon, Hugh Hefner, Nicolas Cage, Kid Rock, Snoop Dogg, Dwayne Wade, Bernard Hopkins, Chip Foose, Roger Pensky, David Bing (mayor of Detroit) and humanitarian, Millard Fuller, the co-founder of Habitat for Humanity. Steven has also done projects for tech industry giants such as Google, General Electric, Hewlett-Packard, Comcast and The Boston Consulting Group and given to recipients globally in Russia, Germany, Switzerland, France, Japan, China and India.
A rare car part becomes a treasured, functional art piece...
One of Steven's most prized treasures is a 1951 Nash-Healy roadster radiator grill that he found early on at a salvage yard. He sanded down the old, gritty chrome, and to his surprise, he discovered a hidden surface of stunning copper and blue patinas! The car grill was then transformed into a giant, functional art wall clock that is proudly displayed in his home as a cherished piece of automotive art history and a great center piece.
The pursuit of art and raising a family in paradise...
Steven currently lives in Maui, Hawaii with his wife and their two boys. He has also expanded his creative ventures to include other types of art such as ocean and island artifacts combined with auto parts, a mixed media pop art collection, and parody t-shirts of well know consumer logos "geared up" as a way of poking fun at our overabundance of gear.
NEWS and PUBLICATIONS
NEWSPAPERS: Honolulu Star-Advertiser Newspaper 05/10/2019 . Seattle Times 12/10/12 . Detroit Free Press 12/06/10 . The Daily Breeze - 04/17/07 . UK Metro Newspaper, London - 01/23/06 . The Silicon Valley Community Newspaper - 08/18/05 . The San Jose Mercury News - 06/25/05 . Las Vegas Review Journal - 04/02/04 . The Chicago Tribune - 08/24/03 . Daytona Beach News Journal - 08/23/03 . The Minnesota Star Tribune - 08/17/03 . The Detroit Daily News - 08/16/03 . The Philadelphia Daily News - 07/29/03 . The San Francisco Chronicle - 07/23/03.
MAGAZINES: AutoWeek Magazine Father's Day Gift Guide - 6/12 . Market.ch - Switzerland - 6/11 . SIDESTEPmag - Germany 4/11 . Cruisin' - Italy - 10/10 . Wheels - Canada - 12/09 . Hagerty Magazine - 11/09 . Classic Car Magazine - 07/09 . City Living Magazine - 08/08 . This Old House Magazine - 05/07 . Special Events Magazine - 05/07 . Makes and Models Magazine - 08/06 . Image Magazine - Silicon Valley - 08/05 . Home Lighting and Accessories - 08/05 . GR8 Street Performance Germany - 08/05 . Sports Car Market - 04/05 . Popular Mechanics - 08/04 . Automobile Magazine - 11/03 . Good Guys Custom Rod and Association - 10/02 . The Hollywood Reporter Corporate Gift Guide - 08/01.
TELEVISION, MOVIE and CELEBRITY EVENTS: The History Channel show, American Pickers - 04/16 . Custom movie prop for The Three E's, by Jason Aaron Goldberg - 04/12 . Torrance TV Channel 3 Interview: Common Cents - 04/08 . Beverly Hills Concours D'Elegance at the Playboy Mansion - 08/07 . Life Style TV Channel - Interview behind the scenes - 4/07 . ESPN - GM All-Car Showdown "King of Bling" - Hollywood, CA - 07/06 . The Great KTEH Television Auction - San Jose, CA - 04/98.
AWARDS: Nominated for a 2008 City of Torrance Advantage Award for local business significance.
