Arts Business Institute grad and NICHE Award winner Joe Diemer makes incredible birdcages and other metalwork. We caught up with him for a quick interview.
ABI: What inspired you to make birdcages?
JD: I’ve always liked to draw, and I’ve made birdcages and things out of wire since I was a boy. My dad’s side were woodworkers and my mom’s side were glassworkers from Italy, so there were plenty of workshops to tinker in. Even though I worked in construction after high school I kept drawing and painting, and at twenty-three I went to collage for illustration. I love decorative ornamentation and beautiful linework, so wirework is very enjoyable because it feels like drawing three dimensionally.
ABI: Who buys your birdcages?
JD: It would be easier if I could pinpoint my market to an age or gender, but I’ve sold them to a very wide variety of people. It is more about their mindset: they are bored with modernism, respect traditional aesthetics, but yet they want something fresh.
ABI: Do your customers actually keep birds in them?
JD: They’re fully functional with lots of operating doors, slumped glass trays, and spun copper bowls, but only 1 out of 5 actually put birds in them – most are used as sculpture. I’ve also seen plants and light put in them.
ABI: Tell us about your technique.
JD: I use surgical-grade stainless steel and bend it on a variety of hand-cranked machines. Then these pieces are lightly tacked together on articulating jigs. I use a small resistance welder to do this, which allows me to further play with the designs. When I’m happy with it, I slip it off of the jigs and silver solder the joints to make a permanent bond. The whole piece is then electropolished, which is the reverse of plating, to bring it to a permanent shine.
ABI: What plans do you have for future work?
JD: I just got a commission to do a hotrod grill that I’m really excited about. I love the birdcages, but the custom jobs are also very satisfying to figure out. In fact, the birdcages make up less than 1/3 of what I do. I recently made a large spice rack and I do a lot of candlesticks and coat racks.
I was granted an artist residency in southern Bohemia for October and November, so I’m looking forward to seeing how that affects my work.
Joe’s designs are amazing! It’s wonderful to see artists like him featured for his talent.