Steel                

History           
Welding (also known as brazing) is an add-on process. Back in the 80's, joining small pieces of sheet metal with a torch flame, filler rod, and flux gave Nannette a sense of freedom. She was able to carry out creative decisions and experimentation during the beginning, middle, and end of a finished sculpture. This is totally different from the confines of casting in metal, where once the image is fixed in wax, the labor-intensive work begins. Along with cardboard, fiberglass, and brass, steel was a welcome change of medium for Nannette.

As Nannette became more immersed in her bronze horse-bird series, she used steel and brass to carry the theme forward. The spontaneity of welding metal helped her resolve the unfinished legs, claws, feathers, and accents. Like the first wax horse-bird image, Nannette let the metal dictate the direction of the piece's concept and surface textures. In Awakening, she ground the weld to a smooth high-shine; while in the earlier Seated Nude, Nannette left the steel weld in its rough state; each had its own aesthetic value.

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