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About The Artist - Terri Schuver
 Almost
five years ago, a desire for unique garden accessories in my own
home landscape me down a path… and now that path is filled with
the designs you see on this web site! Our first arts festival
proved that lots of other gardens were anxiously awaiting
one-of-a-kind artwork. Shortly after that, the artwork moved
indoors. Now the collection features as many designs for the
inside the home as outside.
Who is Prairie Dance
“We”, who make each and every piece of Prairie Dance art, are
two moms that have a first responsibility to our family. You
probably won’t find us in the office or in the studio after 3:00
p.m. on school days and we try to arrange our work load such
that we can be home during school vacations. We think we have
the best of both worlds…flexible time with our family and a
career that allows creativity.
In the fall of 2000, we were joined by artist Gary Gaede whose
pencil sketches and doodles have inspired several designs. His
visits spark our creativity as we sometimes get lost in the
world of welding, aging and packaging!
We” also now includes our part-time welder (a shop foreman by
day) and part-time craftsman (a retired former highway
superintendent that teaches us to use all the tools we don’t
know how to use!)
“Me” is Terri Schuver, a textiles and clothing major by
education, a retailer and business person for nearly 20 years
and a wife and mother of two boys every day. It was the wife and
mother part that pushed me to look at a little adventure in a
different way. Read on…..
How It All Started
While on vacation with my husband and another couple, my friend
and I were attracted to some metal sculptures fashioned from
aged metal. The husbands, not relishing the idea of transporting
the art home, responded “Well, we can do that.”
I took the men up on their claim and just to give them a little
push, committed to a local arts festival a few months away.
True, to their word, the husbands were able to help craft the
new designs, yet days before the Sidewalk Arts Festival in Sioux
Falls, I had nothing to sell. The experiments to age the metal
had failed.
Two days before the festival, tired, hot and frustrated we
applied a solution of vinegar and water to the sculptures lying
in our garage and walked away. Overnight, a combination of
elements imparted a patina more unique that any I had seen.
Others found it appealing too. The arts festival opened at 9 am:
by 9:15 am we had sold out of several designs and Prairie Dance
was on its way!
Today
It took us months to figure out just what worked that night, but
through trial and error we were able to replicate the process.
Today, we’re honored and gratified every time we see one of our
pieces gracing a fireplace mantel, near someone’s front door or
on a stroll through their garden. We’re also happy to have
expanded our design formats such that there is a price for every
pocketbook.
We’ve recently moved into a new studio allowing us
showroom/gallery space as well as more room for production.
We’re enjoying the ability to combine function with the art
resulting in furniture as well as mirrors, frames, family
message centers and more.
About Our Products
"Fragile" is not a part of our vocabulary. Our products are made
of heavy gauge steel and are therefore very sturdy and meant to
be enjoyed for many, many years. All pieces can be used indoors
or outdoors. There is no reason to remove pieces from your
landscape to accommodate seasonal changes - in fact, if you are
fortunate enough to enjoy winter, our designs look great against
a fresh snow!
Our designs are treated using a simple ecological process that
produces unique rusting patterns. Each piece of steel has
different characteristics and therefore rusts in it's own unique
way. No two pieces will be the same.
Prairie Dance metal art will continue to rust as time passes if
left out of doors. Please keep this process in mind when placing
metal art in your home and garden. Your Prairie Dance art will
become even more beautiful as time goes by, but we don't want
your wood deck or favorite rug to be damaged!
Planning on putting your
Prairie Dance sculpture outdoors? Want it to look just
like it did when you took it out of it's shipping box?
Spray it with some
additional polyurethane a few times each year. Sun breaks
down polyurethane and allows the moisture to come in contact
with the steel. Eventually, your sculpture will start to age
again...don't worry, it will not rust away...the pieces will be
around for a long, long time. Many people choose to let nature
take it's course and the steel age naturally. Others choose to
preserve the patina by applying additional coats of hardware
store variety spray polyurethane a few times each year. How
often you spray the piece depends on it's location. Somewhat
sheltered and out of the sun, one coat each year may be enough.
In full sun and exposed to the elements, you may want to coat
three to four times yearly.
Prairie Dance
Products are available at The Our
American Heritage Shop |
- Click on Bernie
