As a young Pat Flanagan, I would catch the train into RMIT to attend trade school, a rather novel trip after recently moving to Melbourne. The ever-present rusty patina and unusual shapes of the railroad infrastructure would often get me thinking about all things sculpture. I remember seeing the railway spring clip closely for the first time and thinking two things: the first being what a cool shape that is, and the second being there must be millions of them somewhere. After acquiring a few milk crates full of them, I made Off Center in the backyard of my Port Melbourne share house with a string line, some chalk, and the humble arc welder.