Stephen Tuttle Portfolio of Works WHY MAKE SOMETHING?         Ever since I was young I have been a maker. Sometimes I make things to serve a practical need. It's satisfying to use something that has come from your own hands.         Other times I make things to explore whatever comes to mind. Though we're always influenced by the culture and the times we live in each of us is a unique filter or compilation of our life experience. What we make expresses that.        Sometimes an idea requires a lot of work to develop with much trial and error. But now and then it comes like a gift from who knows where, fully formed and ready to go, and I feel like just a messenger. It's a wonder for which I'm grateful.        I make things to make my mark on the side of beauty. In a world that is so often destructive, to do something creative, be it a tangible thing or in our relationships to each other, is to touch what is best in being human.         I hope something in these pages pleases you, inspires you, or strikes some note of recognition.                                                         Stephen Tuttle, 2001