"Mars Attacks"

Mars Attacks started as an octopus.

Sean had been working through an aquatic thread — pieces inspired by sea life, by the textures and forms of underwater things — and wanted to build a cephalopod. The challenge was the tentacles: how do you curl six arms into the kind of organic, suggestive shapes an octopus actually has, using only antique lamp parts, without bending or soldering anything? The answer turned out to be chandelier components, found and assembled until the curves were right.

The head is part of a vintage glass sconce. The body — that warm, oxidized copper-and-rust patina — emerged from finishing choices that pushed the piece somewhere between sea-floor relic and something else entirely. By the time it was done, the octopus had taken on a posture that read more like a classic Martian invader than a creature of the deep. Hence the name. Sea life, but staring back at you like it just landed.

The base is hand-carved maple burr, painted, stained, and epoxied to a glossy finish that catches green and teal tones across the surface. The intent was a natural stone effect — what came out reads as wet sea rock, deep and reflective, the perfect counter to the warm filament glow of the bulb mounted at the front.

All antique lamp parts above the base. No welding, no bending, no solder. Fully functional.

The reclaimed wood base of this piece was sourced from Natural Kinships, a small family-owned mill in Bend, Oregon. The family — a father and two sons — fell trees themselves, mill them at their own shop, and turn them into countertops, tabletops, and live-edge slabs. Sean has worked with them for years; over time, they began setting aside cuts specifically suited to his work. Every Natural Kinships base carries a piece of that story.