Since 2004, Margo Westfall and Don Lovett have found real magic in creating metal sculpture. Ask these two self-taught metalworkers what attracted them to steel and they’ll wax poetic about a primal link with spark and flame. Work in metals began for the husband and wife team as an extension of Westfall’s fused glass work; it led to the creation of a special gift for Westfall’s father, and from that gesture an inner spark was ignited.

Metal sculptures produced by Westfall and Lovett often incorporate, yet completely transform, recycled metals. Subtlety, refinement (even with whimsy) and an eye for detail are the trademarks for these artisans. Westfall’s love for gardening translates into unique botanicals for corporations and residences; their shared passion for jewelry-making influences expressive interior décor; their fondness for contemporary art effects their interpretations of exterior screens, gates, and trellises, and their passion for simplicity drives an ongoing specialty line which reinterprets traditional Japanese Ikebana vessels in steel and copper.

For Westfall and Lovett, each residential, corporate, fine, or public art sculpture embodies a focus on balanced design and personal storytelling. Some pieces, they say, conceal and protect their inner selves; others celebrate their meaning in full bloom. The artists use steel as a metaphor for people in their lives because of shared traits: inherent strength, resilience, unpredictability; like people, steel tends to develop a unique patina over time. Margo Westfall and Don Lovett live and create metal art in Olympia, Washington.