Fabulous Furniture is hard to miss on Highway 28. The Boiceville art studio and sculpture garden docks a fleet of futuristic vessels welded from vintage car parts. Over a dozen spaceships and alien craft — some made from spliced automobile frames, others from chrome rims and retro tail lights — catch the eye and imagination.

By day, the vehicles flash baby pink and electric blue paint jobs, striped with hot rod flames. After dark, they light up turning the roadside into an illuminated gallery.

A blue space age hover craft with yellow flames, a canary yellow retro future vehicle with pink flames and other rockets and UFOs on green grass outside Fabulous Furniture.
Futuristic vehicles made of retro car parts at Fabulous Furniture in Boiceville.
(Sofia Misenheimer | Roam Unknown)

This is the domain of artist Steve Heller, a master of metalwork and car modification. At Heller’s workshop, old Cadillacs and other classic cars are as likely to sprout wings as wheels. One reworked Dodge Magnum in the driveway has the “biggest 1959 Caddy fins ever,” according to the artist.

A replica of the main ship in Star Trek with dish-shaped main body and tubes behind. Right: A rocket pointed upward with green aliens peering out the window. The words "Roswell or Bust" are written in the back window.
A USS Enterprise made of retro car parts. Right: Aliens peer out of a huge spaceship.
(Sofia Misenheimer | Roam Unknown)

Custom cars meet cosmic art

Streamlined aesthetics and space age shapes show up all over Heller’s creations. A replica USS Enterprise is poised to “engage” with warp nacelles made of chrome car exhaust pipes. Another piece, “Roswell or Bust,” features a 20-foot rocket complete with aliens in the cockpit. One of Heller’s more celebrated works, a giant Stargate portal, even landed in the permanent collection at the American Visionary Art Museum (AVAM) in Baltimore, Maryland.

A boxy, dark red Dodge Magnum with flamboyant wings that spread out behind almost like a Batmobile.
A custom Dodge Magnum with huge wings outside the Fabulous Furniture showroom.
(Sofia Misenheimer | Roam Unknown)

While sci-fi themes are prevalent, Heller’s work also encompasses earthly myths and music history. A Loch Ness monster winds through the front lawn, and a guitar and dove tribute to the 1969 Woodstock Festival hits all the right notes (the iconic festival grounds are just a few minutes away).

A tubular rocket with two thrusters on the side. Right: A classic-looking UFO with green Martians peering out the top. An unusual egg-shaped alien stands behind the structure.
A rocket ship with turbo thrusters. Right: A UFO with an alien in the background.
(Sofia Misenheimer | Roam Unknown)

Inside the showroom, you’ll find an assortment of smaller sculptures: robots, spaceships, and alien figures. A closer look reveals fingers made from spark plugs, eyes from old brake lights, or a chest built around a speed gauge.

“My favorite piece is the one I did most recently,” Heller quips to Roam Unknown, always ready to favor the next shiny object.

Prices reflect craftsmanship. Though a rocket lamp might set you back thousands, the Caddy nightlights, perfect for a touch of kitsch and sci-fi, are available for $125.

A spaceship hangs in a circular structure. Right: Two robots wave next to a rocket lamp.
A hanging steampunk spaceship. Right: Two robots by a rocket lamp.
(Sofia Misenheimer | Roam Unknown)

Parts and crafts

Out back is where the magic happens. Heller gave a tour of the workshop where he and his creative partner Mike Karpf bring their visions to life.

Just outside is piled high with what can only be described as organized chaos. Need a wrench? Heller knows where to dig. There are different metals, organized by size and shape, ready for the artist to pick, much like a chef selects ingredients from a pantry.

Locals donate to his creative cache, dropping off parts that Heller might turn into his next project. The site even includes two full school buses, awaiting their turn for transformation.

A person in a pink shirt with cut-off sleeves walks by shiny metal objects piled along a foot path.
Steve Heller walks by organized collections of metal outside his workshop.
(Sofia Misenheimer | Roam Unknown)

After a visit to Fabulous Furniture, you might start seeing potential masterpieces in every scrap heap. And if your living room lacks a conversation piece that says, “I love vintage cars and possibly aliens,” now you know where to go.

A chrome rocket next to a bigger metal alien flashing the peace sign.
A rocket sculpture next to a giant alien.
(Sofia Misenheimer | Roam Unknown)

Fabulous Furniture

A robot by the front door of the Fabulous Furniture showroom.

Where: 3930 Route 28, Boiceville, NY

When: Wednesday to Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

More at fabulousfurnitureon28.com

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