ANDREW YOUNG: BIOGRAPHY, MISSION, INTERESTS, and SUNDRY MINUTIA
Andrew Young is not entirely sure which came first: his love of knights, armour and castles or his passion for jedi, stormtroopers and star destroyers. To be sure, both the shining armoured warriors of yesteryear and the 'plasticlad' soldiers of a "long time ago...in a galaxy far, far away" seem strangely akin in futuristic design. Somewhere between the pomp and pageantry of gleaning suits of armor, whirling capes, brash swordplay, and an oddly familiar narrative...the distinction of preference was forever blurred.
In 1988, Andrew returning home from an extensive trip to Europe. After seeing castles and armour in person, he was introduced to several Medieval-esque organizations whose primary objective was actual, non choreographed hand-to-hand combat using metal and leather armour, heavy wooden weaponry, a little duct tape thrown in and plenty of willingness to 'walk-off' the welts and bruises. At the tender age of 15, Andrew realized (perhaps even "felt") that part time jobs after school were hardly enough to afford the expensive of superior steel armor. His life would irrevocably change that year as a result of missing bed linens.....
...Two nights before a Latin class banquet was to be held, otherwise replete with togas, cheese and non-alcholic beverages (milk or coke) , Andrew discovered there were no 'spare' bed sheets a la togas to be had for the impending party. With a pair of aviation snips, a hammer, a railroad track piece, and a desire to be a little different, he surreptitiously disassembled some (poorly placed !) heating duct and began to make something vaguely reminiscent of a muscled breastplate....and the rest is history, sort of.
Mr. Young continued to research and build scores of armour pieces until college at which point he discovered the interlibrary loan process! Through several years he began to identify and collect rare and out-of-print archeology, museum, armour and history books; a library that now exceeds over 2500 texts. During this time, he also become indirectly involved in a number of highly academic living history groups with an aim to understand multiple periods in history; multiple perspectives. The emerging existence of extremely well forged (and expensive) suits of armour precisely fitted to the wearers body, replete with accurate buckles, straps and hardware generated an obsession in Andrew that drove him to elevate his own work when and wherever possible. Doing so also gave him a unique insight into how hard and soft components can truly integrate with physiology and kinetics of the human body. This is an insight he is able to translate into many of his costumes as well as body building and 'orthopedic' devices.
In his early 20s, Mr. Young began receiving invitations from museums and universities to display his work and lecture on topics such as technology, history and the creation and evolution of arms and armour. The list of notable patrons includes the Smithsonian Institution: International Gallery in conjunction with the Imperial Austria exhibit. Other notable institutions included the Washington National Cathedral, the Corcoran, Longwood College, George Mason University, Georgetown University, MCI /wc Headquarters, and hundreds of schools annually. Since 1994 he has given approximately 1000 lectures and programs on history, technology and culture to all manner of audiences on the East Coast.
In the early to mid-1990s, Andrew was formally asked to work on several films. Most notably a TNT production of Joan of Arc. The film was slated to compete with several already in production. Like TNT's Gettysburg, the underlying objective this time was to produce a film which did not stray from known accuracy and highlighted unparalleled high fidelity costumes, equipment, actual fitted steel armour and so forth. Working closely with friend and fellow armourer, Master James Arlen Gillespie, Drew specialized in making both body casts and armour building. Despite farming out some projects to qualified persons, the project was scrapped in late preproduction due to an overwhelming workload in such a short production time given the key objective: hard core accuracy. Needless to say, it was a tremendous learning experience not soon forgotten.
In 1997 and the 20th anniversary of Star Wars: A New Hope (the original~original), Andrew had ironically enrolled in a college Latin class and a Roman history course. Pomp, pageantry and 'Imperial' symbolism nare the lost, Andrew fancied the idea of making a Darth Vader costume, largely out of metal. At an enthusiastic friend's suggestion, he began experimenting with a Boba Fett costume and an Imperial Royal Guard. Before long, he was inundated with requests to make virtually every science fiction or movie costume or suit of armour known. It has remained his passion to translate many of those characters into a longer lasting, more durable medium for posterity: metal. Since 1997, Andrew has learned the art of 'rubber' mold making, fiberglass, plastic forming, and a range of other more modern materials. He still continues to work on his anvil and fire up the forge whenever possible. Mr. Young still takes on commission work for both historical and movie reproductions and entertains proposals for customized talks and programs.
Mr.Young has remained active in the film and TV industry as well. Early in 2004, Drew was cast as a primary actor in a commercial for Toyota. In October 2004, Drew was commissioned to create pieces as part of a Lord of the Rings promotional event for the Return of the King extended DVD. He continues to pursue another seemingly distant passion; becoming an Olympic weightlifter. At about 335 lbs and just under 6' 8" he remains committed to his love of body building, running and the Euro-asian martial arts. In his off hours, you can find him dabbling with some new invention, reading, enjoying a documentary on some obscure or arcane subject, or antique hunting...when nobody is looking, he might slip in a missed episode of the X-files while casually sewing a new costume or sketching out a new idea.
Mr. Young still takes on commission work for both historical and movie reproductions and will entertain a proposal for a custom lecture for your audience.
Education:
GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY
Graduate work in progressGEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
Event Management Program, 2002GEORGE MASON UNIVERISTY
BA: History, 1999OAKTON HIGH SCHOOL
Governor's Seal Diploma, 1992
