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Jim Gary (March 17, 1939 – January 14, 2006) was an American sculptor popularly known for his large, colorful creations of dinosaurs made from discarded automobile parts. These sculptures were typically finished with automobile paint although some were left to develop a natural patina during display outdoors. He was also recognized internationally for his fine, architectural, landscape, and whimsical monumental art as well as abstracts. Sculpture and life figures by Gary often included intricate use of stained glass and his works were frequently composed of, or included, hardware, machine parts, and tools. He employed painted steel in many works, it being his metal of choice. One of his signature works, ''Universal Woman'', a life-sized figure of a woman composed entirely of hardware gained the admiration of renowned sculptor Jacques Lipchitz at a sidewalk show in New York in the early 1960s. Both are modernist sculptors. The Washington Post featured a zoom image from their files of this sculpture in its electronic edition of their 2006 tribute to Gary at his death. A 1971 museum exhibit of his fine art in Washington, D.C. was cited in his listing in ''Who Was Who in American Art, 1564-1975: 400 Years of Artists in America'', a standard library art reference.〔''Who Was Who in American Art, 1564-1975: 400 years of artists in America'', Peter Hastings Falk, editor-in-chief, Sound View Press, Madison, Connecticut, September 1999, in three volumes〕 In 2011 the Asbury Park Press referred to Gary as an icon in the arts.() He was born in Sebastian, Florida, but lived in Colts Neck, New Jersey from early infancy and considered it his hometown. At the time of his death he was a resident of nearby Farmingdale.〔Fox, Margalit. (''Jim Gary, Sculptor Inspired by Junk, Dies at 66'' ), The New York Times, January 19, 2006. Accessed November 27, 2007. "He was 66 and lived in Farmingdale, N.J.... James Gary was born in Sebastian, Fla., on March 17, 1939, and grew up in Colts Neck."〕 Jim Gary is the only sculptor ever invited to present a solo exhibition at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C., which opened on April 12, 1990. In January 2006, ''Time'' stated that Gary's work "delighted kids as well as curators, including those at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, where he had an acclaimed solo show in 1990." A video tribute to Jim Gary was featured by ABC News on ''This Week with George Stefanopoulos'' on Sunday, January 22, 2006. During the same month, on January 24, 2006 the ''Los Angeles Times'' reported in an article, ''Jim Gary, 66; Artist Who Created Playful Dinosaur Skeletons From Car Parts'', that some critics compared Jim Gary's sculptures with Pablo Picasso's famous bull's head made from a bicycle seat and handlebars. ''The New York Times'' devoted half of a page to their newsworthy obituary for Gary on January 19, 2006.〔Fox, Margalit. (''Jim Gary, Sculptor Inspired by Junk, Dies at 66'' ), The New York Times, January 19, 2006〕 Because of his international popularity his death was treated as news around the world 〔''Sculptor Jim Gary dead at 66'', United Press International, Arts News, January 20, 2006, 14:29 GMT — an example of the wire service stories released internationally to subscribing news publications following the announcement of Gary's death〕 and the Gary obituary ran the next day in the arts and leisure section of the globally distributed English language newspaper, the ''International Herald Tribune'', with the title, ''Jim Gary, Sculptor in Metal''.〔Fox, Margalit, ''Jim Gary, Sculptor in Metal'', International Herald Tribune, Culture, Today in Arts and Leisure, January 20, 2006〕 ==Biography== While still at grammar school, at the age of eleven, he moved out of his parents' Colts Neck home and began making his own living.〔Benz, Kafi, ''Sculptor Jim Gary'', Jim Gary Web Site by Kafi Benz, 1990〕 He supported himself by doing odd jobs and selling his handmade seasonal decorations. For almost a year he secretly slept in the garage of the Sterner family, a prominent Monmouth County couple in the same community, who employed him regularly. Once the family discovered this, they provided space in their home for him. He remained close to them until they died.〔Navarra, Tova, ''Jim Gary: his life and art'', 1987, HFN, Inc., p. 13-14〕 From junk parts, Jim Gary built what he needed to get about, first a bicycle and soon—long before he was old enough to drive on the roads legally—automobiles. He competed in gymnastics as a student. After serving in the United States Navy he taught welding and gymnastics in a federal program. During this period he developed a deft hand at welding. Shortly thereafter, applying these welding skills, he began making sculptures that he marketed as architectural elements, and showing his fine art in the New York metropolitan area.〔Benz, Kafi, (''Jim Gary's Twentieth Century Dinosaurs'' ), Kafi Benz Productions, 2001〕 The admiration of welders regarding his welding skills also is documented on his official web site. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Jim Gary」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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