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Charlie Lucas
When you hear the words "tin man," what do you think about? Most likely, you think about the Tin Man from The Wizard of Oz.
Did you know that Alabama has an actual Tin Man? He is an artist named Charlie Lucas!
Charlie Lucas was born into humbling circumstances in 1951. One of 14 children, Charlie learned the importance of, and inherited an understanding of, the value of working with his hands from his father, a welder, and his great-grandfather, a blacksmith. Charlie had other relatives who created quilts and baskets, which were also trades-of-the-hands. These relatives also played a significant role in Charlie's later development as an artist.
Image courtesy of The George F. Landegger Collection of Alabama Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith's America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. See larger version here.
After a truck accident in 1984, Charlie Lucas found himself in terrible pain. With only ten dollars in his pocket, Charlie began a reflective journey that would result in his re-creation as the "Tin Man." Lucas got this nickname in part because of his metal sculptures, although he insists the name mostly comes from the fact that he had little money during his early years as an artist, with only 10 ("tin") dollars in his pocket.
Image courtesy of The George F. Landegger Collection of Alabama Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith's America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. See larger version here.
Throughout the months of painful recuperation in his humble home of "found" brick and wood in Pink Lily, Alabama, the Tin Man created pieces using his imagination and skills as a welder. He produced a sculptural environment replete filled with or well-supplied with something with rusted figures, bicycle tube puppets, and cast-off pieces of iron, steel, wood, and other materials.
Image courtesy of The George F. Landegger Collection of Alabama Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith's America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. See larger version here.
As a child, Charlie Lucas always enjoyed using "found objects"Everyday objects such as cups, keys, chains, buttons, lids, and scraps that can be composed to create a work of art such as an assemblage, a collage, a stabile, a mobile, or a sculpture. to make toys. In fact, the beauty of the discarded materials was that they could be taken apart each time and "re-made" into yet another toy or item. For the Tin Man, who once felt discarded himself, the "found objects" had a personal meaning that seemed to reflect Charlie's own journey and experiences in life. He also refers to his art as his "toys."
Image courtesy of The George F. Landegger Collection of Alabama Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith's America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. See larger version here.
Take a closer look at some of Charlie's toys below.
Image courtesy of The George F. Landegger Collection of Alabama Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith's America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. See larger version here.
Image courtesy of The George F. Landegger Collection of Alabama Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith's America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. See larger version here.
Image courtesy of The George F. Landegger Collection of Alabama Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith's America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. See larger version here.
Image courtesy of The George F. Landegger Collection of Alabama Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith's America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. See larger version here.
Image courtesy of The George F. Landegger Collection of Alabama Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith's America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. See larger version here.
Image courtesy of The George F. Landegger Collection of Alabama Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith's America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. See larger version here.
Image courtesy of The George F. Landegger Collection of Alabama Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith's America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. See larger version here.
Image courtesy of The George F. Landegger Collection of Alabama Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith's America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. See larger version here.
Image courtesy of The George F. Landegger Collection of Alabama Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith's America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. See larger version here.
One of Charlie Lucas's most well-known works is his Self-Portrait, shown below.
© Lucas, Charlie. Self-Portrait. Found objects, welded iron and steel. Collection of the artist. Image used with permission of the artist. See larger version here.
Here's the Self-Portrait from another angle.
© Lucas, Charlie. Self-Portrait. Found objects, welded iron and steel. Collection of the artist. Image used with permission of the artist. See larger version here.
See close-ups of the book in the Self-Portrait here:
See learn more about Charlie Lucas:
- Open the Encyclopedia of Alabama's Charlie Lucas Gallery to see more of his works.
- Read Charlie Lucas's entry in the Encyclopedia of Alabama.
