My name is Joseph Forbish, I was born in and raised in Portland, Oregon. I formed my business, J.F. Metalwerx, in 2000. My passion is creating functional and non-functional works of art using various types of media, focusing mainly on the use of metals, such as steel, aluminium, brass, copper, bronze, etc... But I have been known to dabble a little in glass, stone and paints from time to time. One of the most intriguing things to me about ferrous and non-ferrous metals, are all of the finishes, textures and different colors that can be naturally coaxed out of them using various elements such as heat, liquids or just raw force to name a few. Much of my inspiration comes from the elements around me, the natural colors and shapes of the earth and what it offers are very important to each of my designs. All of the skills and knowledge used in creating these pieces are self taught, and I am constantly teaching myself more and more everyday.