Xn-trix Website

Palmyra artist Kaaren Wiken has been a professional artist along with her husband Tom Rauschke under the name XN-TRIX for over 28 years, yet metal work is somewhat new to her. Known primarily for her intricate embroideries incorporated into Tom’s wooden sculptures, she took up working with metal 13 years ago. Since then she has exhibited her metal at art shows and museums all over the Midwest.

Kaaren’s work is done free hand with a 23,000-degree plasma cutter that would normally be guided by a programmed robotic arm. “I not only found that I loved the act of cutting metal much more than programming a computer” said Kaaren, “but that I could also give each creature more character with free hand cutting. I may be following my pattern, but each sculpture is still one of a kind.”

Kaaren begins with various gauges of recycled metal and, after cutting and fitting the pieces, starts the rust patina with a mild acid bath. Most of her creatures are life-sized and come in a variety of posses that have an uncanny ability to capture the creature in 3 dimensions, or “2-and-a half”, as Kaaren likes to admit. All designs are original and all sculptures are hand cut by Kaaren.