Stewart Smith began making a living at 23 as a woodcarver, bashing hundreds of gnome faces into stumps and selling them at outdoor fairs. As soon as possible, he switched to sculpture in wood, then in bronze. By 1980, needing a steady income, he started carving portraits for a local memorial foundry. Before long, most of his work was with foundries in Canada and the US that needed 3d versions of material ranging from vague ideas to precise drawings.
Stewart's adopted home town, New Hamburg, Ontario, Canada, has been a manufacturing town for over a century. The skills used in casting metal have been passed down over a number of generations.
Stewart Patterns was created in 1981 as a sort of industrial face on a studio that produced technical work, but seemed to lean towards the creative side. Stewart has had many mentors in the business, so the term "self-taught" is not very accurate, but it is the official opposite to "having a degree or diploma in..."
Abandonning the apparent fight between identities as patternmaker or sculptor, Stewart brings a creative flair to his tooling practise, and a technical precision to his sculpture. With a customer base that extends back to the early 80s, Stewart Patterns is known to be both loyal to clients and fearless in the face of new challenges.
There have been times when Stewart Patterns has had up to 4 employees. Stewart is by far at his best as a collaborator, though, and for the last number of years has operated alone, with a great collection of amazing colleagues that can be counted on to take a project to world class standards. Please see the Big Ben project for an example. With over 30 years in his varied trade, Stewart's role can lean towards that of Designer and Project Manager on some assignments.
Inseparable from his "work" is Stewart's love of music. He has been a member of the Stratford Concert Choir for most of a decade, both as tenor and as Director for Promotions. He does all the graphic design for the choir, and does volunteer design for other arts groups in Stratford. (see links) He also sang at Canterbury Cathedral in Britain and at Notre Dame Cathedral with the Cathedral Singers of Ontario.
Stewart is also an avid downhill skier, sea kayaker, and year-round cyclist. Life without employees allows for rides in the sun at noon, random days on the ski slopes, and lunch with his wife at Meme's Cafe.
