David Trujillo tells me that in Great Britain they call it a "folly" when someone builds something just for the hell of it. He certainly considers the medieval tower that he build next to his house to be his folly. But it's a folly that would make anyone proud. From the top he has one of the best 360 degree views in Los Alamos.
In n fact a few years ago a tree got hit by lightning in the canyon in his backyard. The fire fighters couldn't get access to it, and so someone told the fire chief that no only could you see everything from the tower, but there was a path that led to the very spot. So the tower got to function as a fire lookout as well.
His world travels inspired him to build something like a tower.... The Great Wall of China and Machu Picchu were inspirational. But his visit to to the city his ancestors came from before settling in New Mexico generations ago had the biggest impact. Trujillo, Spain had 17 towers!
David just got into scrap metal sculpture last June when he retired from his job as an engineer at the Los Alamos National Lab. His art seems to be another "folly", something to do just for fun, but there's more to it than that.
His neighbor, John Brolley, was a physicist and a prolific sculptor. Brolley gave David several pieces as gifts, and according to David he was the inspiration for the block.
Brolley died in 2008. Shortly after Richard Swenson moved into the neighborhood and was hoping to connect with Brolley to learn from him. Instead he became David's mentor in scrap metal sculpture.
Although Swenson has shared a lot of his techniques with David, David is drawing upon different experiences to come up with his ideas. Swenson has a lot of experience working with horses and observing marine wildlife, and some of his animals are very realistic looking. David has made a lot of southwest animals, like snakes and armadillos, kokipelli. He just finished a miniature Saint James slaying a dragon.
You can see his work at the Karen Wray Fine Art Gallery at 2101 Trinity Drive, Suite B-2, in Los Alamos, NM.
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