I am non-compliant...
My initial goal for learning how to weld was to be the only certified welder in my department for my current employer. It wasn’t until a friend invited me to his wedding that everything took a turn for me. I didn’t want to give him and his wife a generic gift like a blender, a toaster or a crystal fruit bowl. That was when the idea hit me; I would build them a unique piece of furniture, a coffee table! Building that coffee table was the most ambitious thing I had done. My imagination got the best of me, and with a little more searching and a lot of motivation, I decided that I needed to do more than build that one coffee table. Moving forward, I decided that I would break into a market that seemed relatively untouched, custom furniture for the savvy home decor enthusiast. I could wield my creativity in such a way that I could produce custom, modern, contemporary, and even traditional furniture using steel, wood, glass, marble, for those who are starved for it.
The opportunity to branch into set designs had opened up for me when my friend Michelle Ferraro, who works for Metal Blade Records as a publicist, was having a meeting with As I Lay Dying about the tour that they were on when ideas about their upcoming headlining run for Sounds of the Underground came up. Michelle had mentioned my name, saying that I was a certified welder, and that I would be able to make whatever they needed for the tour. Just like that, I set out to build a set design that not only impressed As I Lay Dying, the staff at Metal Blade, the bands on tour, but even myself. It was obvious for me to take this route as well. Music has been an integral part of my life since I was young. This would be my chance to give back to the bands that rode
with me through highs and lows of my life. A bands set design creates the atmosphere of a live show. Together, bands and I can build a set that reflects the passion and meaning of the music that they play.
My clients and I will throw stones at the ideals of what furniture and set designs should be. We will stand, non-compliant, in the face of what society wants us to be.
About Me
Name: Steve Cortes
Certifications:
-AWS D1.3 Sheet Steel, GMAW (Semi Automatic)
-ASME Pressure Vessel, GTAW 1 3/4” Tubing, Chromeolly
-ASME Pressure Vessel,
GTAW 1 7/8” Tubing, Stainless Steel
-MILLSTD 1595A, GTAW Stainless Steel
-MILLSTD 1595A, GMAW Steel
-MILLSTD 1595A, GTAW 6061 T6 Aluminum
Favorite Quote: There is a level of cowardice lower than that of the conformist: the fashionable non-conformist.
- Ayn Rand
