"The process I use to create my metal art is called acid painting on copper. The process is really a negotiation between me and the copper. As the artist, I start with a vision of where I want to go with each piece, but the copper and nature's elements have a significant hand in the result. A combination of vision, composition of the metal and the weather creates an artistic outcome that can never be replicated, even if I tried.
Practically speaking, I start each piece by cutting a sheet of copper into the shape I want and building a backing for support. Acid painting happens when copper reacts to different acids. Each reaction is influenced by weather conditions like heat, humidity, rain, and wind. Once the natural reaction has started, I use inks, dyes, plant material – and anything else I can think of – to affect that reaction. Being surprised by nature's intentions is one of the most satisfying byproducts of this work.
Any one piece of metal art takes about 4 to 6 months to complete. During that time, as my expectations run up against the will of the metal and each unique reaction, a form of artful arm-wrestling takes place. It's a give-and-take dance and the results, while sometime surprising, are always as they're meant to be.
I think it's hard to understand the 'process' of my metal art without understanding the 'place' where I do the work. The Property is acreage I bought on Brushy Creek about 16 years ago. I work with my best dog, Peso, in an open-sided stone building on the Property. The sound of the creek running, beautiful old pecan trees, wildlife, and just the stillness of the place inspire me every day. And the people who come to visit, who let their dogs and kids run loose, lay in the hammock, or just sit in the creek and drink a cold beer – all of those people bring life to my work."
—Lisa Pollard
