Gossamer Steel
Gossamer Steel creates one-of-a-kind designs in metal for your home or business
Specializing in fine metal finishing on features such as reception desk and bar facades, fireplace surrounds, doors, back splashes, range hoods, signage, feature walls, tiles, columns, furniture and railings. Every stage of your project is customized--from the design and fabrication to the installation.
Bio for Michelle Sturley ("Mishka")
In 2000, I started “Gossamer Steel Metal Works” to create one-of-a-kind and custom works in metal. Along the way, I have been developing my skills as an artist, designer, welder, fabricator, metalsmith, patineur, and small-business operator. The word gossamer refers to a material that is extremely delicate, airy, fine, and light; I feel that my artistic style brings these qualities into a unique juxtaposition with the metal's strength and durability.
In 1999, I took a workshop called “Metal Working for the Artisan” and felt an immediate connection to the medium. I bought my own welding equipment and rented a rare old barn in the middle of Vancouver and began what would become my passion and my livelihood.
I eventually became a certified welder and 3-D Designer, but for the first 4 years I was self-taught in my new craft and trade; this period of experimentation allowed me to hone in on my own style and discover what attracts me most to working with metal. While I have always enjoyed the problem-solving required in the welding and fabrication process of 3-D designs, my creativity is drawn more to creating beauty on the 2-D surface of the metal. Working with metal's unique ability to change colour and reflect light, I approach a sheet of metal much like a painter would approach a blank canvas but instead of paintbrushes, I use torches and grinders and instead of paints I use chemical patinas and dyes. The result is a luminous piece of art with the captivating illusion of three-dimensional layering and movement.
