A model for scale, seated on the 10-foot horse constructed from driftwood. (Photo Credit: Jeffro Uitto, Knock on Wood)

When Jeffro Uitto gets to work on a project, he's not just drawing inspiration from his surroundings -- he's also battling the elements.

Uitto is an artist in Tokeland, Wash. and he relies entirely on found pieces of driftwood to build his sculptures. He creates a combination of furniture and artistic pieces, some on commission and some drawn from his own creative vision.In the summertime, Uitto spends most of his days working on various sculptures, but during the winter he's scouting local beaches.

"The winter is my hunting time," Uitto said in an interview with weather.com "It's always really wild because the weather's so crazy and intense. Winter time is so powerful here, it's cool just to go out into the elements and find pieces."

Uitto never knows what he's going to find on the shores of Washington, since the currents can carry things from all over the world.

"The stuff I'm finding is from way back when they used to demolish all these great trees, and it's the remnants left over," Uitto said. "It feels so great to utilize that material and know that it's getting a new life into it and nothing is destroyed."

Many of Uitto's ideas come from his location, and he'll work on a project for years if he has an idea in his head but can't find the right pieces for it. He's traveled to Hawaii and Alaska to build pieces there, but Tokeland remains his favorite place to look for new driftwood.

Take a look at the slideshow above to see some of Uitto's animal sculptures. For more information about his work and the in-progress sculptures, you can visit his website or his Facebook page.

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