Sometimes we feel the urge to take a new path—to shake off what’s familiar and set a fresh course. Sometimes it happens effortlessly, without a second thought. Other times it’s a hard-won battle through countless challenges. And when we’re standing at the edge of something new and exciting, it can be tough to know where to even begin.
Often, the road doesn’t start on asphalt or dirt at all. It starts in your imagination.
Hi, my name is Blaise. I’m an artist, designer, and fabricator. In my work—professionally and personally—my task has always been to take the abstract and make it real. To start with an idea or a flash of inspiration and turn the immaterial into something you can touch. I guess that’s just a fancy way of saying: I make things.
But don’t get me wrong—there’s something deeper going on. I believe there’s a fundamental connection between our humanity and our ability to dream and build. It’s a connection worth preserving. For better or worse, I’ve always been pulled toward that intersection. I’m fascinated by how things are made, how we got here, and how the look and feel of objects shape the world around us.
More specifically, I’ve had a long-standing interest—okay, obsession—with two-wheeled, motor-driven machines. And that’s where this story begins.
I've wanted to tackle a custom bike build for a while now. Motorcycles have always had a grip on my imagination. They're a physical embodiment of freedom, grit, ingenuity, creativity, and engineering marvel. Just think about this—at one point in history, we were freezing cold, rubbing two sticks together to make fire. Now we've harnessed that same power in a shiny metal box and use it to rip around mountain roads for pure thrill-seeking pleasure. How absolutely, absurdly wonderful!
But … I could never pull the trigger. Something was always in the way. Eventually I realized I wasn't getting any younger and life wasn't getting any easier—so I might as well take the plunge. After a few weeks of marketplace searching, I found what I think is the perfect donor bike: a 1984 Suzuki GS 450. It's not a terribly exciting bike, but it's got good bones. It's raw, and that's exactly what I want—motor, seat, tank, and two wheels. Let's go!
So what's the plan for this project? Here's the creative brief I've come up with:
This project is my attempt to merge art and engineering by transforming a motorcycle into a working canvas for ideas, sketches, and handmade parts. I'll be designing and fabricating custom components while documenting the process in my sketchbook. Along the way, I'll share the wins, the mistakes, and the problem-solving that happens in between. By the end, the finished bike won't just be a machine I built—it'll be a visual story about creativity, craft, and the process of making something entirely your own.
I've never done a project like this before. I have a pretty good knack for fixing things and figuring out how they work, but it's going to be an uphill battle to get this old bike running and looking like something special.
I'm looking forward to sharing more about this project as it develops.
Your awesome, thanks for reading!
-Blaise
ps. Here’s a short teaser I put together of the bike so far.