BILL LOYDGrowing up on a farm in Colorado, I remember watching my father and uncle create useful equipment from apparent candidates for the junkyard. From this experience I learned that it's usually possible to make do with what's available and that the cup is rarely empty. As I considered this "waste not, want not" mantra, I came to the realization that one could extend the concept to the creation of objects of grace and beauty as well as practicality.My long held dream of being an artist was realized through the unlikely avenue of a protracted illness. It is intriguing how life can drag us, albeit kicking and screaming, to a place where we belong. I reconsidered my welding business, thanked it for my skills and left it behind. I am back to work, skills intact, and determined to express my experience and the farmer's mantra as objects of beauty to the eye and ear.My materials are the refuse of industry. My world is filled with castoff oilfield pipe, expired pressure vessels and rusty chain. As I survey these objects in junkyards and surplus auctions, my mind leaves "the box", turns a corner and proceeds along some unknown path. On this path, I am challenged to discover the potential for self expression. I find joy in that challenge.