Meet Ethan Cline of Sedona

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ethan Cline.

Hi Ethan, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work life, how can you bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I had been working at a bronze foundry in Sedona, Az, assisting with casting large life-size sculptures. At around the same time, I discovered magic mushrooms and decided to take a few to work to immortalize them by casting them in bronze. I remember casting the first one and drilling a hole thru it so it could be strung on a necklace. I took that first piece and showed my boss, who responded with, “you’re a #!%$ing genius!” I then took photos of that first mushroom and posted them on social media. At the time, it was Instagram, and I remember receiving so much support and many inquiries asking where to buy my work. That was when I realized I was on to something. Mushrooms, and the magic behind them, became a huge part of my artwork after that experience. I never looked back!

Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I don’t think the road is ever going to be completely smooth. While working at the bronze foundry in Sedona, I was contacted by a local bulk jewelry casting facility that focused primarily on sterling silver. The conversation went something like, “why aren’t you working for us?” To which I replied, “Are you offering me a position?” I began working with the jewelry casting facility and immediately saw growth in my art. Having all of the tools to create jewelry and the knowledge of the owners of that shop helped propel me to the next level. I started doing art shows and went to my first Telluride Colorado mushroom festival, which was a huge hit. Upon returning home and back to work after that festival, I was having trouble focusing on anything but my artwork, even though my 9-5 job was to produce artwork for others at the jewelry facility. I started to spend more and more time at work working on my art and less and less time working on my job. That caused some tension, eventually leading to the casting facility and me splitting ways. I had outstanding orders which I had no means of completing. At that time, it felt like my entire life was over. Not only did I no longer have a job, but I also lost access to all the equipment I used to create my own work. It was such a big turning point, leading to a lot of self-reflection and years of acquiring my own tools and equipment. Fast forward to today, I have all of my equipment, probably more than one guy may need, but I could persist and continue on my art journey from what at the time felt like the end. I’m also happy that I could rekindle my relationship with my past employers, which meant a lot since they had shown me so much of what I knew at the time.

Thanks for sharing that. So, you could tell us a bit more about your work.
Most of my work is inspired by nature, psilocybin mushrooms in particular. I started my art career by taking a bag of mushrooms and casting them directly into bronze, silver, and later gold. The process is similar to lost wax casting. However, I call it lost mushroom casting. The process consists of taking a mushroom specimen and pouring liquid plaster over it; when the plaster hardens, I load it into a special kiln which reaches temperatures well over 2000F. The mushroom is sacrificed during its time in the kiln, leaving a perfect mold in the now-hardened plaster. At this point, I take the plaster mold and continue with the normal jewelry casting process by pouring molten metal into the crevice where the mushroom once was the result- a solid metal mushroom.

How do you define success?
For me, success is happiness. Success is waking up daily and living a happy life however you choose, without limitation.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://designbycline.bigcartel.com/
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/designbycline?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/designbycline