Enter the Steel Yard. Big cascading windows billow upwards from the concrete ground to the high, arching ceiling. Wherever you stand, you can see the sky. Shelves filled with finished and unfinished pottery surround the open space where the tools of the resident artists lie across workshop tables.

One cup on the “finished shelf” is small enough to be coveted by a hand. It is the color of sand, and etched into it are dark lines that appear to be little worms crawling all over it. Another, in the shape of a bear, catches the eye of Howie Sneider, the executive director of the yard and the guide for this tour. 

“That’s a cool bear,” he remarks. “That must be new,” he adds, clearly thrilled by the discovery. 

As the tour moves from the ceramics shop toward the metal area, Sneider imparts some wisdom, repeating what an artist once told him: “In 1,000 years, your steel tables will be dust, but my clay ceramics will just be broken.”

In the middle of the ceramics shop, a row of healthy plants hang on a divider, creating a visual wall of life within the room. The leaves of the long climbing plants flow from the ceramics shop to the jewelry room, giving a path to follow among the clutter of tools and shelves amidst the ceramics. 

The history of the yard 

The yard resides on the occupied traditional homelands of the Narragansett Nation, including the Mashapaug, Nahagansett, and Wampanoag peoples. “We celebrate the past and future contributions, and stewardship, of the Indigenous peoples of the Woonasquatucket Valley and surrounding lands,” Sneider elaborates. The name of the river flowing by the yard—Woonasquatucket—means “where the salt water ends,” and Sneider claims, “As it rises and lowers, it seems to give the yard a pulse.” 

After 100 years of business, from 1903 to 2003, the Providence Steel and Iron Company was taken over by what is now the Steel Yard. Sneider describes the work done by artists at the yard as community-driven. “The work we do here is driven by giving opportunities, voice, and agency to artists,” he comments. 

He speaks about the resident artists, teachers and students that are typically shuffling through the workshop, crafting their art, but gets stopped in his tracks again by a teal colored ring  “I can’t believe someone left that here,” he says. The beauty of the ring is memorizing.

Art on public display

“We try to make sure the work that gets done here puts examples of metals and local art into the community,” Sneider continues as we enter the welding shop, where benches, trash cans, tables, and more are made for the public. Everything made from steel at the yard has a symbol engraved into it, representing the hard work of the artists who create here. 

“The symbol can likely be found on every trash can in Providence,” comments Sneider. He says the point is to add a layer of cultural meaning to functional things like a bike rack. “A bike rack could just be a bike rack, or it could also be a way to celebrate something about the neighborhood or add a bit of history,” he adds.

Some of the history made at the yard might include structures you are familiar with, such as the Rocky Point Archway or the Trinity Repertory Mobile Stage. Some, like Tina’s Tables, you might not be so familiar with. Tina’s Tables are custom, accessible picnic tables for use at public events and sites across the state. Accessibility is an important element added to the yard, as both the inside and outside have accessible ramps and seating. “We try to keep everything as accessible as possible at the yard so that anyone can come here and create,” Sneider says. 

One of the most recent additions is a new sign created for Billy Taylor Park in Providence. Sneider excitedly shows a photo of its installation in real-time on his cell phone — the moment breathes life into the empty yard as both the artists and welders have left for the day.