divine Hobart

some more pics on the B home progress

[[posterous-content:pid___1]]beveling molding[[posterous-content:pid___3]]Jim in his office[[posterous-content:pid___4]]fitting the roof section[[posterous-content:pid___0]]tasks tasks tasks

 

Our old friend Stephen Markus dropped us a review of his summer 2011 interning experience.

just thought i would share. [[posterous-content:pid___2]]

 

This past summer I had the great pleasure of interning at the Trenton Atelier in

hopes of developing my engineering skills for a future career in the field. I found

the internship through a search engine through my college, and was unsure of what

to expect when going into it. From the research I had done at the time, I expected

to learn how to make a firebowl, run errands, clean the shop, basically anything

that someone with limited metalworking experience would be allowed to do in an

established company. But boy was I wrong…

 

Literally within a week of joining the team at the TA, I was already up to my neck in

new experiences and lessons. I quickly was taught by the team how to weld, grind,

plasma cut, and perform several other metalworking tasks. I was immersed in the

company’s vision of creating sustainable art and mechanisms. The time and effort

that Pete and his team put into me learning how to work with metal was immense

and definitely paid off. As someone with plenty of experience with carpentry but

little experience in metalworking, I had always seen metal as a rigid, static object

that couldn’t be molded or altered. However, after only a few weeks at the Trenton

Atelier, I began to see metal as I do Play-Doh; a completely moldable, malleable,

formable object with which I can create whatever I want.

 

As if I hadn’t already achieved enough in learning how to metalwork, I was involved

in every other aspect of 220 Allen St. as well. I was involved in “front office” work

such as correspondence with clients and local community leaders. I put together

packages of TA information, with products and samples to send to wholesalers

for them to sell our products. I learned organic cooking techniques and enjoyed

many gourmet lunches, made fresh daily in the TA kitchen. I made two of my own

pendulum paintings, which are now hanging up on the wall of my living room at

home! I fabricated a dinner table centerpiece out of a car brake rotor and bolts for

my mother’s birthday, which Pete and the TA team encouraged me to enter into

ArtWorks, the local art show. Their confidence in my abilities were crucial in the

process of fabricating this piece. In addition, I built my own firebowl for a customer,

as well as many other products that were sent out to clients. I even made my own

custom firescreen!

 

As I alluded to earlier, the most important aspect of this internship was the

concepts that Pete and the team instilled into me. Pete preaches sustainability and

environmental awareness, and displays this mindset in everything he does, from

using limes as ice cubes, to reusing everything- and I mean EVERYTHING- in the

shop! He also brought out of me a creative side that I never knew I had. Having

free reign every day over all of the tools and instruments in 220 Allen, the building

was literally my blank slate. How could you not be intrigued by a huge hanging

pendulum, a ton of different paints, and a ton of plastic to cover things from getting

dirty?! I spent many days getting my arms covered in paint in the name of creativity

and letting loose, and it certainly paid off.

 

I undoubtedly believe that the skills Pete and the TA team taught me, as well as

 

learning the science behind everything, was invaluable for my future career. The

family they fostered, as well as the creativity and open-mindedness that they instil

led in me will be everlasting, and I have nobody but the Trenton Atelier to thank for

molding me into the creative, innovative mind that I am today.