The Concrete Network

There's a place in Escanaba, Michigan, where art and decorative concrete blend seamlessly; that place is Rock Elements, owned and operated by Ryan Brayak, who grew up around concrete and has found a way to shake up the ordinary each and every day.

Founder, designer and fabricator Brayak graduated from the University of Michigan Architecture School and has worked in the precast concrete industry for over 10 years. His company creates concrete products custom designed and built for each client, as well as handling delivery and installation of the work.

Rock Elements creates tiles, shower enclosures, stand-alone shower enclosures, bathtubs, sinks, tables, desks, chairs, chaises, benches, vases, bookshelves, precast wall panels (available in many shapes, textures and colors for indoor and outdoor applications), countertops, jewelry / accessory boxes, custom forms for building projects, artwork and bowls—all from concrete—as well as provides concrete consulting and fabric forms.

According to their website, Rock Elements is a design/fabrication studio "devoted to the development of concrete and steel in furniture and larger built design." Brayak has taken his family's concrete experience and expanded upon it with his knowledge of (and bachelor's degree from the University of Michigan in) architecture, creating work that is experimental in nature and derived from an understanding of concrete's strengths and limitations.

After graduating, Brayak worked at the University before traveling to India to work for an architecture firm there for 3 ½ months. Upon returning to Michigan, Brayak worked with his dad while pursuing his artistic endeavors on the side, such as toying with creating a concrete tabletop with steel legs.

Brayak did create that piece, which took three months to perfect, before he showed it at a local art gallery. That was May 2004, and he says that's when things started to take off. Currently Brayak's work is being exhibited at The Rock Barn Warehouse in Ishpeming, Michigan, and Tatum Studios in Petoskey, Michigan.

One of his newer creations is the concrete wall panel, which can be made any size, color and texture. Brayak can also put images in them and polish them. All of which offers variety from run-of-the-mill wallpaper and paint. Because each panel is only ¾-inch thick, it's less dense and therefore can be applied directly to a wall with epoxy.

"I knew the possibilities, I knew what I could do with them," explains Brayak. "They create a unique alternative to wallpaper and paint...they can be clean and smooth or contemporary or rustic."

All of which appeals to Rock Elements' clientele, which Brayak says is as diverse as his products, adding, "I have not been approached by the same style home twice."

For example, in Stonington, Michigan, Rock Elements created pieces for two new construction log cabins and a home shaped like a barn. The client, from the Netherlands, found Brayak through The Concrete Network and he liked what he saw.

Brayak created 3-inch thick grey concrete countertops with back splashes and clad the kitchen cabinets in 2-inch thick concrete for both log cabins. He also clad the showers in grey 7-foot-tall, 1-inch thick concrete wall panels, which varied from 24 to 31 inches wide.

For the Sol Blu martini bar in Iron Mountain, Michigan, Brayak created his first bar top in a shallow "s" pattern with varying dimensions from 26 inches at its narrowest point to 31 inches at its widest point. The top was made in four 2-inch thick pieces and totals 24 feet in all. He added a built-in drink rail and used two colors, grey and black, before polishing the top, then coating it with blue, then polishing it again and sealing it.

Among his more artistic renderings is a pair of concrete jeans, which Brayak created for an art showing. "I had the idea for a while," he explains. "Jeans are an American pop culture icon, but I wanted to play with it."

Although Brayak designs his own flexible fabric forms which can be used more than once, he adds that he knew he needed to make rigid forms for this particular piece. It took him three weeks to create the rigid mold, but the effort was well worth it because the piece is now on display in a gallery in Petoskey, Michigan, and Brayak says he also plans to enter it into another art show in May.

As for the small works Rock Elements creates, such as the jewelry boxes that are 12 inches by 8 inches long, 2 ¼-inches tall with walls that are 3/8-inch thick and integrally colored, though beautiful, there's a marketing strategy behind each piece.

"I created them because when you're dealing with concrete furniture, there's not a lot of custom furniture places, but I can place these boxes in stores I may never get furniture into, such as spas," Brayak says, adding that he puts his business cards in them and gets referrals that way.

With plans to create a concrete grandfather clock for an art show competition, Brayak notes that he likes to take unusual things and make them out of concrete to give people ideas.

"I get unique customers by promoting unique products," he laughs. "I take things that no one has seen in any other medium before and make them out of concrete."
Brayak says he's also been approaching communities to work concrete into their designs. "I want to show them that good design doesn't have to kill your wallet," he says.

Whether it's jewelry boxes, countertops, sinks, or benches made in such a way that they create never-ending chairs and fluid sitting areas, Rock Elements creates pieces that are beautiful, maintenance free, durable, functional and hold up well.

Ryan Brayak
5413 J. Road
Escanaba, MI 49829
(906) 280-3431 Office
Send Mail Now - Click Here
http://www.rockelements.com

More Contractor Features

Find Decorative Concrete Contractors
Or: