Cowboys, horses, bison, bears emerge from scrap metal

South Dakota metal artist John Lopez uses repurposed scrap metal from vehicles and equipment to create lifelike sculptures. Images provided by John Lopez Studios

Fans of Western movies—or Leonardo DiCaprio— spent breathless moments grimacing as his character, Hugh Glass, was mauled by a grizzly in 2015’s movie “The Revenant.” Based on historical events that took place in the Lemmon, S.D., area, the film is a semi-autobiographical story of the 1823 attack and Glass’ survival.

Attendees entering Lemmon’s Palace Theatre for a special prescreening of the movie were greeted by a life-size sculpture portraying the conflict. John Lopez, Lemmon’s resident sculptor, crafted the depiction of Glass and the bear from metal parts pulled from discarded farm equipment. Today that sculpture is part of the permanent display at Lemmon’s Grand River Museum.

This Glass and grizzly sculpture and many others created by Lopez depict the area and its past. Subjects include bison, horses, presidents, and even a fish-riding cowboy that symbolizes the community’s heritage and the rich fishing found in the Missouri River. The sculptor’s media of choice is repurposed metal from vehicles and equipment that once worked for local farmers, cattlemen, and ranchers and carry their own history forward.

“I use snow chains, plow disks, scoop shovels, teeth from mowers, legs from old washing machines—anything made of steel that I can weld. I live in a scrap metal paradise and collect old metal from friends and neighbors who just want to get rid of it. It’s a win-win,” Lopez said.

Lopez welds the wildly diverse metal pieces onto steel frames, positioning each piece so the proportions of the finished sculpture will be correct as it relates to its real-life counterpart. Some works are so detailed that even the underlying muscular structure can be recognized.

Building Skills

Lopez began his art career working with bronze castings. He would sculpt a model out of clay, use the model to make a mold, and then pour liquid bronze into the mold.

“Studying horses and buffalo when working with clay and growing up on a ranch gave me an advantage when I switched to working with found objects about 15 years ago. I was already familiar with the physical proportions and had the measurements right because I had become familiar with the anatomy. Those details make the sculptures look real,” he said.

Growing up on a ranch also helped develop MIG welding skills that were fine-tuned in a high school welding class and while working with other artists who choose metal as their media.

Lopez’ lifelike sculptures take shape in a studio located on his 14-acre ranch about three miles outside of Lemmon. His preference is to work from his own imagination and build to please himself, but he also builds commissioned pieces.

A larger-than-life sculpture of Ed Lemmon astride his horse was commissioned by Lemmon’s community leaders. The resulting 12- by 8- by 4-foot sculpture resides in Boss Cowman Square next to Lopez’ gallery, Kokomo Inn. A mural of a cattle drive painted on the gallery’s exterior wall provides a fitting backdrop.

Lopez works on his sculptures in a studio on his ranch.

Kokomo Inn itself is another example of Lopez’ recycling originality. He turned what was a Main Street bar into the gallery that houses his work.

Sparking Tourism

“People come to Lemmon to see my work in person and to meet me,” he said. “Kokomo gives me a local outlet for my work and a place where people can interact with the art.

“One of the fun parts is watching old-timers walk up to one of my pieces and recognize some of the metal. It starts an interesting conversation. They talk about old machinery they or their grandpas used to have.”

Lopez’s sculptures are seen in exhibits throughout the U.S. and are gaining an international presence. There is one in France, one in Monaco, and several in the Middle East’s Doha, Qatar.

“Right now I’m working on a lot of commissioned pieces, but when I first started, I just did what I wanted to do and people would buy it,” he said. “I enjoy doing both, but I feel a lot more freedom when working just for myself. I get a little more excited about the possibilities as I build and I can take more chances.”

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