Gabriel and Elsie, his beloved CNC

Gabriel always liked art, but he combined it with the technical side of it, so he studied architecture. At first he made his works out of paper, layering several carefully cut and coloured layers on top of each other, and ended up with beautiful 3D images. He didn't need much for his art, so for a while the studio meant a corner of his bedroom, and the raw material was old magazines gathered from various storage rooms.

But at some point he discovered wood and started working with it. He used tackle as he used the paper, cutting it out and overlapping it so it would fit the desired pattern.

With the help of wood, he was able to get much closer to what he wanted. He began to make elaborate works, very similar to the representation of the universe in Hindu and Buddhist symbolism (mandalas).

Because of the sheer volume of work, the time to complete a job was very long. Each layer that had to be cut to a precise pattern took up a lot of time. He realised that most of the time spent on the work was not for the artistic part. The time would have been greatly reduced if he had a laser CNC. Only it was very expensive. So he decided to turn to www.kickstarter.com, which helps artists of all kinds find the resources and support to put their ideas into practice.

In fact, it was not his first experience of this kind. When his art was just on paper, he managed to raise some funds to finance himself. He created a campaign on his website to present his entire project, promising those who donated his work. He told them that the works would be limited editions, that after the campaign ended he would never do those themes again, that the works would be complete and ready to put on the wall and would be shipped, at no extra cost, anywhere in the world.

The campaign was a total success. Gabriel originally set out to raise $10,000, money that would allow him to buy the car and rent a space for his workshop. As a result of the campaign, he managed to raise over $50,000.

Now Gabriel Schama has his own workshop where he works, as he says, together with Elsie, his beloved CNC. He uses mahogany plywood, which he cuts, colours, glues and finishes to produce truly beautiful images. He says his art is aesthetic rather than conceptual. He likes to think of himself as a follower of the old craftsmen, the ones who adorned fabrics, building facades and palaces from ancient times.

Gabriel has honoured all his orders to his supporters and is now invited to exhibit his work in well-known museums. In the meantime, he has also started to paint very interesting portraits. Last year he had an exhibition at The Center for Art in Wood in Philadelphia, and now his work is on view for 3 months at the Bedford Gallery in Walnut Creek, California.

The story of young artist Gabriel Schama, from Oklahoma, USA, is one of those success stories that, the moment you read it, you want to say "that's too good, it can't be true". And yet, it is. The important thing is to know what you want and to take things one step at a time, doing them well and with passion.

source: gabrielschama.com