“It’s when there’s no hope but that”

Over 2.5 million years ago, one of the first animals to ever be classified as “Human” revolutionized how our species lived with an invention that continues, to this day, to play an integral part in our way of life. To me, a knife represents the very essence of ingenuity and creativity that lay within each and every one of us. From stone to steel, a knife is so much more than a pointy object that media and corporations may lead you to believe about it.

While my interest in the topic comes from this idea, my passion started as just being a teenager with too much time on his hands. Growing up in the suburbs of Chicago with a very creative family, I was extremely lucky to have the freedom to discover my interests and even luckier to have access to the resources to pursue them. I had tried my hand at painting, writing, sports, science, and whatever topics came my way, but never stuck with anything for long. That was, however, until I stumbled upon videos of blacksmiths and blade smiths using a multitude of techniques and materials to create a single finished piece. The variety of skills used as well as the combinations of materials such as wood being joined to steel drew me to the trade like a magnet. During the summer of 2017, I scrounged together every cent I had to buy myself my first tools and, (with much help from my father) at 15 years old, I swung a hammer onto hot steel for the first time.

Since then, I have kept with my craft, reaching closer towards perfection with each project, creating pieces of art from a medium that was born out of necessity. I have walked through life trying to wear as many other hats as possible. I went to school to learn to weld, later taking classes on electrical work and getting a degree, working in a bicycle shop, and most recently making a foray into leather work. With this experience, it has become clear how lucky I was to learn everything I have. Such an epiphany has driven me to take up yet another vocation in teaching, with the hopes of eventually starting my own establishment to give young creative people the same outlet I was fortunate enough to have. I am currently working towards becoming a technical educator. My sister is a scenic designer in Chicago and my father is a graphic designer, having recently started his own business selling his artwork, “Banana Bread Workshop”.