When sparks start to fly in the two-car garage sized shop attached to Peter Briggs’ Fort Worth home, you can rest assured he’s not just “horsing around.”

In the past four years, Briggs has transformed his nearly lifelong passion for welding into an artistic journey.

It all started when a dear friend asked Briggs to make a horseshoe cross as a memorial for her son who tragically passed away.

“To me it was like a sign from God that this could be my calling,” he said.

Fast forward to today and most of what Briggs creates can be described as  “functional art” and it almost always starts the same – with a simple horseshoe.

“My process begins with brainstorming ideas,” he explained. “The majority of my work comes from my brain. I look for practical applications for what I build.”

Sometimes a piece is created simply because Briggs has an inspiration.

“I will sit and think about an idea, then I will lay out the pieces and think how it will look or function,” he said. “I’ll do this several times before I lay down my first weld. It can be maddening sometimes, but I believe in what I want the piece to look like hanging on a client’s wall. I won’t weld it up until I’m satisfied in my vision and sometimes, I cut it all up and start over.

There are also times people ask Briggs for a specific item.

“One time a client asked me to make a horseshoe rooster piece,” he said.

Briggs was happy to oblige.

Since that first horseshoe cross, Briggs’ collection of creations just grew and grew.  He has created buckle displays, seasonal items, custom horseshoe belt buckles, bridle racks, coat racks, wall shelves, candle bases, salt and pepper holders and even jewelry racks.

“I once made a custom BBQ tool rack for NRCHA (National Reined Cow Horse Association) professionals Chris and Sarah Dawson,” he said.

Once Briggs decides what he will be creating the process moves on to the building stage.

“Since most of my work is made from horseshoes, I must decide on size and shape,” he explained. “I also add in nails to my horseshoe art along with other steel materials.”

Along with several metal grinding and polishing tools, Briggs utilizes a wire welder, a type of welding process where a continuous wire is fed through a welding gun to create an arc that melts the base metal and the wire itself,  joining the pieces together, called by some “sewing with fire.”

“For my more decorative pieces like the belt buckles, I utilize stones, beads and crystals for the embellishments,” he said. “All my pieces are finished off with protective clear coats or paint if needed.”

The time it takes to complete and item from start to finish varies greatly depending on the individual piece and its intricacies.

“I usually give myself one to two weeks, but some items can take longer,” he said.

“I’m in my shop three to four days per week and depending on what I’m working on, I probably finish up three to four pieces per week,” Briggs said. “Some days I will weld six to eight hours in a day.”

Briggs’ roots in the horse industry run deep. His great-grandmother, Rose Fulton,  was a founding member of the American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA). She owned a ranch in southern Arizona ­­and competed on the AQHA circuit from 1940-1960.

Briggs was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and grew up riding horses. His mother owned several roping horses and he started showing in Lead Line and Walk-Trot events at local shows in New Mexico, on a  Paint named Manny that his family owned.

“I showed Manny in Lead Line with my dad doing the leading,” he recalled. “I remember winning a little trophy.”

Briggs’ older brother is Pilot Point, Texas, professional trainer John Briggs and once he graduated from the Walk-Trot Division, he started showing  in all-around classes under his brother’s guidance, getting the opportunity to ride some highly decorated show horses.

“I qualified for the AJQHYA (now AQHYA) World show every year from 1989 to 1994,” he said. “I had two top 10 finishes in Showmanship with two different horses – Becka Lee in 1991 and We Be Jettin in 1994.”

Briggs was also 1990 AQHA Youth World Champion in Trail on Mr Bueno Dial Bar. And, he competed at the All American Quarter Horse Congress several years during his youth career accumulating several top 10 placings including the 1990 12-14 Trail Champion riding Mr Bueno Dial Bar.

“We Be Jettin was the last horse I competed on during my youth career,” he said. “I sold him to Joetta Meredith Bell at the 1994 Youth World. She went on to win several World and Congress championships on him before retiring him.”

Unlike other members of the family, Briggs did not gravitate toward work in the horse industry. He took a much different path.

After high school he attended Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Wildlife Sciences.

In 2003 Briggs accepted a position with the Fort Worth Zoo working in the Revenue Operations department, but later was given the opportunity to transfer to the Animal Programs department.

“I worked in the Texas Wild section for four years when I was approached about joining the Elephant Department,” he said. “I spent the next 17 years working with some of the most amazing animals on the planet. My career at the zoo was an unforgettable experience.”

Briggs recently retired as the elephant department supervisor after 21 years.

These days, his life is filled with traveling and spending time with his wife of 16 years, Kirsten.

“We met at the 2007 AQHYA World Show,” he said. “A mutual friend introduced us.”

Briggs is close with the rest of his family too. In addition to his older brother, John, he has three older sisters who still live in New Mexico, along with his mother.

He doesn’t have horses any more but admits “You never know what the future holds.”

And, of course, there’s the welding.

“Oddly enough, welding relaxes me,” Briggs said. “It allows me to slow down my mind and focus on the process.”

That focus had allowed him to expand his designs to include new items to his portfolio.

“Now I have seasonal items such as Christmas trees, snowmen and pumpkins all made from horseshoes,” he said. “I started sharing my work on social media and it kind of took off from there.”

Social media has had a huge impact on Briggs’ ability to get his work out in front of a larger audience. And advances in technology have paved the way.

“The technology of my equipment has really evolved and given me some help with streamlining some of the processes I use in the day -to-day operations,” he said.

But at the end of the day, what is most important to Briggs is the spirit of his designs. He says his nativity scene is, without a doubt, the piece of which he is most proud.

“It was my own original design,” he explained. “I consider it to be an heirloom piece that I can only hope will be passed down to future generations.”

A Peter Briggs creation ranges in price from $40 to $300 depending on how elaborate the design. Custom work can even be more depending on the scope of the piece.

“I recently have begun making my work available to shows for awards,” Briggs explained. “The buckle displays have been very popular. The bridle racks are also a hit with the shows.”

You can see more examples of Peter Briggs’ work by connecting with him on his Peter Briggs Facebook page.