Over the summer of 2023, I created an eastern dragon design to fit on the frame of a flame effects project. The first version needed some revisions to fit with the dragon’s horns. It also needed to be laser-cut without losing pieces.

This second revision made more sense and pairs well with the horns. Once the design was finalized, it was sent off to be laser-cut onto steel panels. Originally, the design was to be a continuous panel that was bent to fit the frames.

Assembling the flaming horns that rise behind the head. Some fiddling was required to get the angle right.

With the final revision complete, the manufacturing company threw a curve ball. They couldn’t do the required bends for a continuous cut. A few long nights saw the design updated to pop out as individual panels.

Here, we are checking the fuel plumbing before bolting the panels on. The challenge with having individual panels instead of one continuous panel was figuring out where they went, like a puzzle.

After a two-year hiatus, Ignition Northwest started planning and running events again. Here is the finished project on display at Critical Northwest in 2023.