The pianist Perry Olds is not a professional entertainer, but his enthusiasm for the combination is pleasant enough. Olds joked that a keyboardist friend "exclaimed that one person can buy a [only] four-string violin for $250,000." Compare it to an 88-key piano-it's not only "much more complicated." , Olds pointed out, "And you have to spend money to get someone to drag it away."

For several years, Olds has been using a variety of discovered and salvaged items to make combined devices. As we all know, the piano is difficult to move as a whole. One day, his daughter told him that her neighbor only wanted to give away some parts and asked to use them for art projects. "That must be me!" Olds exclaimed-this is the beginning of the Piano Bones series.

"Just by talking to people about my work, I got works from two other pianos. I recently got a complete automatic piano and I am very excited about it." (It is stored in his studio Waiting to be deconstructed.) Olds particularly likes the piano’s moving parts, internal levers and hammers: “These complex and precise wooden parts are very cool.” However, sometimes he adds parts to the piano that he has not enjoyed in his previous life, such as Wooden furniture parts or sand casting patterns.

First, he must deconstruct the "action" of the piano-the moving parts that connect the keys to the hammers (strike the strings). When accumulating these small mechanics, "sometimes ideas start to freeze at that time-I like to organize." This trait may be traced back to his training as an engineer, testing the engine for Rolls-Royce in Indianapolis. 

Even before he retired, Olds dabbled in art, doing acrylic painting, photography, rubbings, composition, and handmade paper casting, but now he and his wife settle in North Carolina, close to their daughter in Asheville. More time can be devoted to his innovative craftsmanship.

"I believe that as long as I have enough things, I can use almost anything to create art," Olds said. But first, he might spend weeks studying the layout of the parts and occasionally adjusting them to obtain a satisfactory design. He admits that he sometimes encounters a dead end where interesting works refuse to be presented. "Then I will either give it more time or give it up and start over with different parts." These parts are sometimes painted or painted, and then the artist prepares a mounting board where he draws the layout and finally glues the materials. The size of his completed works ranged from 36" x 72" (named "Eighty-Eight Notes") to 9 ½" x 72" ("Chorus"). 

Olds is the interior artist of Mars Landing Galleries, a new venue in Mars Hill. Gallery owner Miryam Rojas mentioned that "Perry has transformed from a long engineering career to a free-spirited artist-I like that."

He said that his combination is not intended to convey any specific message. "I'm very happy to be able to show works of art that others find interesting. When others find fun in my work, it's worth it."

Perry Olds, Mount Mars, visits the family studio by appointment (contact the artist at oldwillow22@gmail.com). Olds is represented by the Mars Landing Gallery (37 Library St., Mars Hill, marslandinggalleries.com).

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