Devon Rhodes never considered himself an artist. He had to accept the title after enough people claimed he is one.
Rhodes, a parks and recreation major at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, creates art and lamps from the driftwood he collects from the Albemarle Sound. He has been known to haul in 400 pounds of wood at a time.
He devotes a lot of time to the newfound hobby, but cannot tell you how much time.
“It really depends on the type of wood that I’m working with,” Rhodes said. “They can take two to three days or two to three weeks.”
After drying out the salvaged driftwood, Rhodes sands and cuts the pieces.
Then comes the hard part, deciding what the wood will become. The lamps are hard to make because Rhodes has to drill through the wood to install the hardware.
He stains and polyurethanes them. Many of the lamps have nautical themes, emphasized by ropes and shells.
Rhodes started selling his pieces at Washington’s Saturday Market.
“This is the first time I’ve had enough pieces to sell here. The rest have been commissioned work,” he said.
Now, the new artist has his eye on local galleries. He wants to show his work in River Walk Gallery and Art Center sometime soon.
“Hopefully,” he said.
To view more of Rhodes’ work, search for Art Adrift on Facebook or catch him at a Saturday Market.