Barbara Persons, also known as Barbie the Welder is an inspiring female metal fabrication sculptor. Persons was born and raised in Elmira, New York. Growing up, she learned a lot from her father in multiple trades including carpentry and electrical. However, Barbra decided to take up welding as she was inspired to do so after seeing a female character in the film Cast Away metal fabricate wings onto an angel sculpture. From there, she saw her future as a sculptor. 

Her career began in 2007 after saving $1,200 over 9 months to attend a local BOCES welding program. After two years of education, she was hired as a sheet metal fabricator at Cameron Manufacturing and Design. After five years of learning from that job, she moved on to work as an independent artist. Persons gained popularity via Instagram, where her work was spread across the web. Since then, Person has created countless sculptures for her clients, pursuing the career of her dreams. 

Persons focuses on the ability to push through the hard times and come out on top. Throughout her life, Persons has faced many challenges including disapproval from men in her life, alcohol, and low self-esteem. Through welding, Perosns has completely changed herself as a person and highlights the importance of sharing her experiences to inspire other women. To do this, Persons has created six books, multiple of these being self-improvement titles, others on her trade. Since 2020, Persons has been working on a sculpture of a phoenix. This piece is a self-portrait, representing her rebirth as a person, changing for the better, and helping other women grow alongside her, as she hopes others see themselves in this piece. Barbie the welder continues to encourage women to build their futures from the ground up, starting now.

“I’ve made a decision to sculpt my own destiny… who you are today it doesn’t mean that’s who you have to be tomorrow”- Barbara Persons.