About Me

My name is Thomas but for as long as I can remember I've been "TJ". I grew up in Long Island, hold a degree in physics, and am a professionally trained welder. Now I'm a full time artist making whimsically expressive sculptures from recycled kitchen supplies.

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People regularly inquire about how spoons became my primary artistic medium. The short answer is basically a playful accident. The long answer? I bought a welding machine for personal use and happened to have an extra set of cutlery. After some experimentation I had a few basic utensil people in various, albeit rather stiff, poses. I made a few gifts for friends and family but didn't take the medium seriously until I took a much needed work leave in January 2023 to release some pent up creativity. An overwhelmingly positive feedback from family, friends, and relatively small following pushed me to pursue the medium. Now I find inspiration all around me - in my hobbies, in my friends, from other artists, from experiences which bring me joy, from my pain and struggles, in stories of success, and stories of failure.

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I like to say there's a madness to my method. Sometimes I approach projects with a plan, research, photos, and sketches but I find my best, and most expressive, work derives from a chaotic combination of rough ideas, miming, brute force, and touch of colorful language. For particularly thick metals and very tight bends I'll apply heat to soften the metal but in the vast majority of cases a simple adjustable wrench and elbow grease are all I need.