GNTC student’s sculpture fuses love for welding, art

A Georgia Northwestern Technical College (GNTC) student was recently commissioned to create a sculpture for The Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus and his wife, Billi.

Bernie Marcus, a billionaire philanthropist, passed away on Nov. 5 at age 95.

Madison Gasho, a native of Taylorsville, expects to complete a diploma in Welding and Joining Technology in summer 2025. She attends welding classes as a traditional full-time GNTC student at night at the Polk County College and Career Academy in Cedartown. Her sculpture is on display at the office of The Marcus Foundation in Atlanta.

“Construction Ready was looking for a student with the artistic skill to make a sculpture as a gift for Bernie Marcus. I mentioned that I had a student that had just finished a sculpture for the SkillsUSA Georgia state competition that also works for The Home Depot,” said Matt Hayden, instructor of Welding and Joining Technology at GNTC. “Madison was fully committed to the project.”

Scott Shelar, president and CEO of Construction Ready and a friend of Marcus, suggested some themes, including the Georgia Aquarium, which Marcus donated to Atlanta and the State of Georgia in gratitude for the support he received for establishing the chain of The Home Depot stores. Gasho said Shelar selected the design from several sketches she drew.

“The Marcus Foundation has been a significant and long-time supporter of Construction Ready and the work we do in career and technical education in high schools and technical colleges,” Shelar said.

About a year ago, one of the foundation’s representatives visited the Construction Ready CareerEXPO and SkillsUSA Georgia State Championships at the Georgia World Congress Center and looked at all of the welding sculptures created by SkillsUSA students. She remarked that Billi and Bernie Marcus would love to see these sculptures, so shortly after the event, Construction Ready reached out to Hayden, Shelar said.

“Billi and Bernie have been huge believers in building the skilled trades and supporting young people who are pursuing a career in construction,” Shelar said. “That’s why they have supported Construction Ready and our mission to help people of all ages and backgrounds find a great career in construction. We knew a sculpture built by a welding student and a SkillsUSA competitor was the perfect gift.”

“This is my first commissioned work as a sculptor after making some projects with Mr. Hayden,” Gasho said. “When I learned that the gift was for Mr. Marcus’ 95th birthday, I felt pressure to do a great job.”

The untitled sculpture features a turtle and a fish swimming through seagrass. The aquatic scene is made of stainless steel, mild steel, brass and bronze, Hayden said.

Shelar said Gasho had sent sketches and photos throughout the process and knew what the sculpture would look like, but when she delivered the sculpture to his offices in Atlanta, he was “blown away” when he saw the actual materials, coloring and attention to detail.

“We knew it was the perfect gift for Bernie Marcus the moment Madison took it out of the box and set it down in our office,” Shelar said. “Madison far exceeded our expectations with what she was able to create.”

Hayden said he tapped Gasho because he knew she aspires to be an artist and had competed in the Welding Sculpture category at the 2024 SkillsUSA Georgia State Leadership and Skills Conference in February in Atlanta.

“The design of the sculpture was 100 percent Madison’s,” Hayden said. “I don’t have the artistic touch needed to create the design. I helped her select the correct metals and guided her to form and weld them. The skill to weld the metals together while making the sculpture aesthetically pleasing is very difficult.”

Hayden said Gasho learned a lot of techniques and skills on this project. He was amazed to watch the sculpture develop.

“Madison would explain what she wanted to do, and I would explain and work with her to get the effect she envisioned,” Hayden said. “I knew she would produce an amazing piece of art, but it was unreal to watch it unfold day-by-day.”

“Bernie and Billi (Marcus) both saw and received the sculpture and were amazed by it,” Shelar said. “They both remarked how incredible it was to make something so beautiful out of materials typically used for utility rather than art. They both treasure the sculpture, its compliment to the Georgia Aquarium and have reserved a space for it in their offices.”

Gasho said she has worked for the last two and a half years at The Home Depot. She is currently looking for a job in welding.

“I originally planned to go to college to study art,” Gasho said. “I was accepted, but then started thinking about combining my love of art and practical metal working.”

After researching welding careers and GNTC’s Welding and Joining Technology program, she realized she could earn more money in welding.

She welds and makes other repairs on tractors with her father on the family farm. Her goal is to convert the shop on the farm into a welding art studio.

“Madison is very detail oriented and creative as both a student and artist. She has been a student in my welding classes for six semesters, has worked diligently in all processes of welding and cutting and has shown a talent for art, combining it with welding and metalworking,” Hayden said.

After Gasho started classes at GNTC, she learned she did not know as much about welding as she thought she did from her welding experience with farm machinery. She said she has learned a great deal firsthand from the professionals Hayden has brought to speak to students about their experiences and the skills they use to do their jobs.

Through her classes at GNTC, Gasho has improved her time management skills and learned to critique her own work so that she can continue to learn and improve, she said.

Hayden allows students the opportunity to self-assess their work to determine whether they have mastered the tasked skills and techniques sufficiently to move on to another lesson or whether they need to spend more time on the current task.

Gasho and Hayden have also created sculptures of a pair of wings and will soon start working on two sculptures for the Atrium Health Floyd Polk Medical Center in Cedartown, she said.

“Madison has a very outgoing personality, and this along with her talent and skill will serve her well in her career,” Hayden said.

Hayden connected with Construction Ready through SkillsUSA. GNTC students compete in the state and national SkillsUSA competitions each year; Hayden said he has participated in the SkillsUSA welding competitions for more than 25 years.

Construction Ready is a not-for-profit entity focused on building a skilled construction workforce.