After high school and a short college experience Ryan Maclay moved to Steamboat, CO in 1995 where he skied as much as possible during the winter and worked as a carpenter during the summer. After 4 years, he moved to Denver and went back to college in pursuit of a Bachelor of Fine Art. Throughout Ryan’s time at art school he was drawn to the relationship between glass and wood and its interaction with nature and space. It was also important that his art was functional as well as useful. He graduated from Metro State with an emphasis in sculpture, the medium being wood and glass, for the finished product of art furniture. 

 

After graduation Ryan moved back to PA and began work full time for a custom carpenter. Over the next 13 years Ryan refined his carpentry skills and learned how to build homes start to finish.  The use of reclaimed materials became more important in his work. From old barn parts to old truck parts, the repurposing of old materials is a center point of his pieces. Throughout his time as a carpenter he got the opportunity to expand his mediums into metal working.  Ryan has produced many different wrought iron projects, from fences and gates, to planter boxes and balconies. This passion of carpentry led Ryan to start IDF and become a full time artist and custom fabricator, including all the mediums that he loves: glass, metal, and wood. As his business progressed, he started doing more in lighting and began custom fabricating everything from large metal chandeliers to custom molded glass sconces.

 

This integration between old, new, metal, wood, and glass is what brought Ryan to his business name of Integrated Design and Fabrication Inc. In the future Ryan plans to continue to push his designs and fabrication skills while integrating wood, metal, and glass into each piece he creates.