Maverick Style: Inspired by the West

Embodying All Things Vintage and Collectible

I met self taught artist and sculptor Carol Braden at the Western Design Conference in September. I was hugely impressed with her full sized guitar sculptures, and so was everyone else at the show. She sold the three guitar sculptures featured here within hours of the show's opening! As they happened to be my favorite pieces, I was not at all surprised!

Carol Braden is a Northwest-based mixed media artist who is best known for her guitar sculptures featuring authentic license plates. According to Carol, "The guitars are probably my most favorite thing to create, mainly because I love their shape, and I love how people feel when they first lay eyes on them. To me, they embody music and traveling, and all things vintage and collectible."

Up until the Western Design Conference, Carol's guitar sculptures featured collages of authentic license plates affixed to the bodies, sides, and necks of actual acoutic guitars. She decided to take the concept even further for the September show, creating three special Western themed guitars that showcased other vintage finds in addition to license plates. The results were absolutely stunning! The reaction to Carol Braden's new guitar sculptures was so positive, that she is creating more guitars in the same vein. I can't wait to see what she does next!

If you are as impressed as I am with Carol's guitar sculptures, you can commission her to create a guitar sculpture especially for you, or as a gift. She has done commissioned work for musicians who want to chronicle a recent tour, and couples wanting to immortalize the states they have traveled together.

Visit the Carol Braden website to see more of her distinctive guitar sculptures and to contact her directly regarding a commissioned piece.