Ask Gabby Gayle

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Q

Dear Gabby Gayle: My mom lives in an assisted living community. It has been a wonderful living arrangement. We have a loving and engaged family and visited her often and took her out often. The community just announced that a few employees have been diagnosed with COVID-19. Now we cannot visit her. She cannot leave her apartment, and I am living in mortal fear that she will catch the dreaded virus. She cannot even see her husband! We FIRST-CLASS MAIL

feel helpless. I remember you were in the retirement business before you retired. Any suggestions? Signed, Fearful

A

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Dear Fearful: I empathize with you. I have three close friends in facilities, and all have the virus in their residences. One of my friends cannot see her husband and tells me she would rather die than be without him. The loneliness of not seeing loved ones is painful to the resident and the loved one.

I have a couple of suggestions. First,  nd out if someone on the sta could FaceTime or Zoom from your parents’ room to loved ones. Some places are regularly doing this from their activity department. The only other thing I can suggest is if the resident has a spouse, the husband move in with his wife for a few months, until this pandemic is over. Good communities should be providing activities by way of the television—such as exercise, counseling, games and a way for residents to voice their concerns to management. If this is not provided, please talk to the administrator to see if these things can be provided. The pandemic has caught us all o guard and unprepared. This has placed a huge strain on long-term care residences. They have become short-sta ed, illness has struck even the administrators, they have had to procure personal protective equipment and teach the sta how to use it, and establish a method of testing the sta and residents. Sending prayers! Signed, GG

QDear Gabby Gayle: I am a 60-yearold gay woman. I have had a significant relationship for 20 years with another we are both professionals and have been afraid it would damage our status at work. Everyone, including our families, thinks we are just friends. Now that I am 60 and she is 65, we are rethinking living together. I am not divulging our professions for obvious reasons. Do you have any advice for us?

Signed, In the Closet

ADear Closet: I realize that 20 years ago it was a di erent world for all LGBTQ persons. However, this is 2020, and I cannot imagine denying yourselves the joy of living together, no matter what your profession. As for family, (they probably already suspect and they don’t care). It is not the business of your workplace to know what you do with your personal life, and you are not obligated to tell them, except to change your address or if you marry, etc. I am an advocate of separating work and home. You have wasted 20 years! Please enjoy the home stretch of your lives. Signed, GG

QDear Gabby Gayle: I am 55 years old and lost my job of 25 years due to the pandemic. First, I was laid o . Then they sent me a letter and said they were not replacing my position. Thank you for 25 years, huh? I believe some companies are using the pandemic to recon gure their sta to save them money. Nevertheless, I am having trouble even getting an interview. When I got this job, I  lled out an application and I either got called for an interview or I went on to the next. Nowadays, it is lengthy online applications, and you don’t even get a chance for an interview. I think they see my age and think “No way,” and there is not a darned thing I can do about it. Any suggestions? Signed, Jobless

ADear Jobless: You have joined a huge group of the formerly employed in our society! First, try applying for jobs within your area of expertise. Then, do not give up. Patience. We have to play the woman. We do not live together because

cards we are dealt! Good luck, GG

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Features Metal HEAVY

Metal artist Daniel Moore creates new public art installation in Tempe for Beyond Self Storage

Metal artist Daniel Moore recently created an art installation for Beyond Self Storage’s new location in Tempe. (Photo by Mike Small of Mike Small Photography)

BY LAURA LATZKO

With any public art project, artist Daniel Moore thinks about the purpose behind the building. The concepts of “decluttering” and “compartmentalizing” inspired him when he was developing a piece called “Chaos Restored” for Beyond Self Storage in Tempe.

This is one of the more recent works for 57-year-old Moore, the owner of The Oxide Studio in Phoenix.

This metal art installation is featured on a 65-by-35-foot building face for Beyond Self Storage’s second location at the corner of Ruby and Priest drives.

When developing his design, Moore considered the nature of Beyond Self Storage’s work.

“A lot of people don’t have enough room for the things that they own, and they need a place to organize their lives,” he says.

“That’s what that piece represents, is these elements that are chaotic moving down and having some sense of organization and becoming compartmentalized in those rectangular shapes that are to the left of that giant wall. They are actually boxes. If you look at them closely, all of the elements represent a three-di 8 | AUGUST 2020 mension box, which echoes the theme of a storage facility.

The piece was developed in conjunction with the city of Tempe’s Art in Private Development Ordinance, which requires new developments over 50,000 square feet to either support arts programs or commission works of art for their properties. The piece was made with hot-rolled steel, which Moore often uses in his work.

The process took about a year and a half. Moore says there are diff erent stages to any public art project, including designing, fabricating and transporting the pieces.

“It’s one thing to design it on paper. It’s another thing to fi gure out how it’s going to be mounted and the materials that it’s going to be made out of—making sure that they are durable and the maintenance is of minimal concern,” he says.

Along with creating the sculptural elements for the building, Moore developed the painted pattern behind it. To do this, he created a color palette and dimensional drawing that outlined where the diff erent colors would go on the building.

He worked closely with the architect, project manager and site supervisor when developing the piece, which is one of his largest. With his public art projects, he often collaborates with architects, engineers and designers.

Moore has had a lot of help from his family to grow his business.

From the beginning, his wife, Nancy, was heavily involved in the family-run business. Their three daughters also assist when they can.

“They have all, in one way or another, contributed in the past and as we speak to the success of our business. It is defi - nitely a family aff air,” he says. Before coming on full time in October 2016, his wife—a trained ballerina and Russian folk dancer—owned her own business, worked as a Montessori teacher and had jobs in the fi nancial and nonprofi t sectors. He says his wife handles bookwork, marketing, taxes, insurance and public art paperwork for the company, allowing him to focus on creating artwork.

“We both have specialized talents, but they are completely diff erent. We work very well together in that respect,” Moore says.

Hailing from Iowa City, Iowa, Moore always loved to draw and create things as a child, but it wasn’t until his sophomore year at the University of Iowa that he began to think about a career as an artist.

He graduated from the university with a degree in graphic design and photography, minoring in ceramics and jewelry, and moved to Arizona shortly thereafter in 1986.

Before starting his own business, Moore worked as a graphic designer for a sign company, where he was fi rst to metalwork. While working for the sign company, he was inspired to create more artistic designs. He taught himself to weld, improving on the skill over the years through his work with oxide.

He started making metal sculptures for his wife for Mother’s Day and birthday presents, and then expanded to doing botanical panels for art shows and home tours.

His off erings and clientele soon expanded, and he started Oxide in 2010. The studio is located out of his garage in the Willo Historic District in Phoenix.

Through his company, he creates sculptural pieces, furniture, custom gates, fences, heavy-metal windchimes and botanical panels for residential and commercial customers and public art projects.

His artwork is shown at galleries in Jerome, Sedona and near Bryce Canyon, Utah, as well as in the Desert Botanical Garden gift shop. Oxide Studio also takes part in shows at the DBG and in Fountain Hills.

With each project, Moore looks at clients’ spaces, personal styles and needs.

“Everyone’s home has a diff erent vibe, a diff erent style, a diff erent architecture. What I try to do is work with the client, taking into consideration their environment, their style, if its eclectic, contemporary or traditional. I try to do something that is conducive to where they live and their environment,” Moore says.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Moore has been busy with projects in private residences because more people want to Metal...continues on page 9

For a recent project, metal artist Daniel Moore created tree-themed artwork for Emerson Elementary School. (Photo by Daniel Moore)