Featured Artist

Butcherooney
Butcherooney  is a newly retired union carpenter, living in the Pacific Northwest.  He discovered junk!  Garage sales, flea markets, thrift stores, auctions, junk stores, and junk yards are some of his favorite places.  He says that his worst day of creating things have been better than his best working days.

Beesley, found object sculpture, Butcherooney

What inspired you to make your first found object creation? 
I was surfing on the internet one day and came across a site that displayed "yard art". There are always lots of links to click on and one thing lead to another. Pretty soon I honed in on something that interested me and realized, "Hey! I could do that!" Within a short time I had a few of these things in my own yard and I began to get some good feedback from friends and family (I emailed them the pictures) and that encouraged me to keep creating.  Not only is it fun it has a certain therapeutic quality associated with it.

Coalman, found object sculpture, Butcherooney

What have you found to be the best sources of “junk” for your creations?
The best sources are mentioned below in my bio, but to really get to the actual "source" I would say the junk itself. Let me explain. For instance I bought an old Bell and Howell movie projector at a humane society thrift store. It had a treasure trove of "parts" for creating robots, etc. So that is the absolute best- the junk itself, ie; sewing machines, typewriters, mechanical devices, just whatever. 

Queenie, found object sculpture, Butcherooney

Do you typically have the idea for a character in mind and search for the pieces to make it or do the objects you find inspire the characters?
Actually, the objects I find inspire the characters. In my shop I have a wall that has several hundreds of pieces of "junk". I call it the "creation wall" because I am always scanning that wall for "body parts". Every once in a while though I do get to a point where I wish I had something else to complete my creation and will go hunting for just the right piece. Truthfully, going shopping is just as fun as creating.

Slick- The Banker, found object sculpture, Butcherooney

Are any of your characters inspired by real-life people or animals?
No. While they may be in the likeness of a human or animal they were not inspired in that way. 


Many thanks to Butch for sharing his wonderful work!  Be sure to check out more of his creations.


What do you think these found object creations?