By: Jake Manning/Shareably Recreating the wild wild west out of discarded farm equipment, South Dakota-based artist John Lopez’s amazing metal sculptures will blow your mind! Check them out below:
Source: John Lopez Studio
Eco-friendly and full of personality, these welded figures perfectly capture the iconography of the American West — a bison, a horse with a plow, a Texas Longhorn — a past reconfigured out of recycled materials.
Lopez began his career as a bronze sculptor but realized the versatility of scrap metal when he forged a family grave for his deceased aunt. It creates a unique aesthetic, a kind of mishmash punk sensibility in his beautiful and imposing artwork.
It pays respect to the past while also playing with the idea of renewing and reconfiguring familiar imagery into something completely different. Where have you seen a cowboy riding a dinosaur before?
Source: John Lopez Studio
Source: John Lopez Studio
“My favorite part about these pieces is the texture,” explains Lopez. “I just start grabbin’ stuff from the pile and welding it, in and if you weld enough of the same thing on over and over it creates this really cool texture that I’ve never seen in these kinds of pieces before. And I think that’s what draws people in.”
Blurring the line between organic, artificial, and symbol, Lopez’s art is sure to leave an impact! It’s striking how well they blend into the Midwestern scenery.
Source: John Lopez Studio
What did you think of these fantastic sculptures? Let us know in the comments below!
