LOCS: Craft Lake City Artisan

LOCS

iHorns4U@gmail.com

Frank Falk is a litigation consultant, married to his high school sweetheart, a father of seven and a grandfather of four. He’s also an avid historian and storyteller, an antique-collecting artisan and a handy audio specialist—all trades that manifest through his iHorns. Now in their fourth year, these iHorns have come a long way from Falk’s first piece—a birthday gift for his youngest son—and have made appearances at festivals, markets and fairs in Utah and Arizona, recently winning Best in Show at Summerfest 2016 in Logan, Utah.

These charming and nostalgic creations act as powerful speakers for your phone—iHome-like phone dock and all—only, these are one-of-a-kind, curated, passive amplifiers that are more gramophone than bluetooth speaker. Mixing metals, wood, plastics and more, Falk brings new life to the innovations of old, which he mostly garners through online auctions: a 1920 papier-mâché horn paired with a 1930s car radio, a rubber horn with an Atwater Kent coffin-style radio, a WWII Navy flashlight with an oil and gas funnel, a sleek and simple cowhorn. “When you’re making something that’s one-of-a-kind, each is a puzzle that you have to figure out, and the result is different every time—each appeals to somebody different,” Falk says. “With each piece, I learn something new about development and technology, about those things that colored our past and influence our future.”

Developing your creative outlet into a full-fledged business is no easy task, but with the advice of two mentors, Falk has navigated the learning curve and brought joy to many. Folks purchase or commission massive pieces to sit as statement pieces in their living rooms, and others purchase smaller iHorns to use as an office speakerphone. “You’ll get 4-year-old kids who want to put the phone into every single iHorn and see what each sounds like,” says Falk, as every horn carries a unique, amplified timbre. “Then you’ll get 95-year-old people—we include each piece’s history—who want to tell me the stories of their youth.”

With each project, Falk takes on a new, creative and exploratory challenge. Visitors to his Craft Lake City DIY Fest booth, young and old alike, will have a chance to discover each iHorns’ revitalized, transportive histories and sounds.

For more information about CLC DIY Festival programming, click here.