That's the case of one local man who's using nature to help create his art.
If you've ever driven on the west side highway or been on the bike path, you've no doubt spotted his creations and maybe did a double take.
For a long time, it was a mystery - who was building these elaborate wooden sculptures along the Hudson?
His name is Tom Loback and his gallery is like no other.
To say Loback is hypnotized by the Hudson River would only be telling part of his story.
"If you come here say after a bug thunderstorm and the tide is out, there's all sort of fresh wood up and down, tree trunks, things you can't lift with 3 people, let alone one person like me, although I've moved some big pieces of wood (laugh)," he said.
Moved and created an outdoor gallery, filled with thousands of driftwood sculptures.
"I work fast, I maybe take 20 minutes to a half an hour to do a piece and then I take off," he said.
His began collecting and carefully crafting these pieces, in the late 90's, was kind of a fluke. Tom tells me he quit smoking and to relax, starting taking long walk along this stretch. That's when he noticed the wood - drift and lumber, a treasure chest that most overlooked.
"Sometimes you can take one single piece of wood, stand it up and it looks beautiful," Loback said.
LINK: WATCH EXTENDED INTERVIEW WITH THE ARTIST
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