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JAMES HAGERTY utilizes farm implements, auto
parts, and any rusted iron with an "interesting
shape or resonance" to construct what he calls
"anthro-pomorphisms" or "totems." In his later
work he veers toward the abstract, but without
losing sight of the whimsical expressionism that
characterizes his earlier output.
James Hagerty has shown his assemblage
sculptures at the following gal-leries: Ross
Watkins, Aerie Art Garden, The Art Source, all
of Palm Desert; and Magnet of Indio,
California. He’s been the featured artist at
Palm Desert Library, Occidental College, and
Living Desert. A selection of his paintings,
oil and acrylic on canvas, will be displayed at
College of the Desert Library in the fall of
2005.
He has been an artist for over ten years. His
art is displayed and enjoyed
in homes across the United States. His studio
and grounds are perched above scenic Morongo
Valley and Big Morongo Canyon Preserve, a
world-famous bird watching destination in
Southern California. The sculptures are
displayed in a setting of cactus, rocks, and
desert flora, with spectacular views of Mount
San Jacinto.
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ART IN THE DESERT
Assembled Objects Become
Icons In Hands of Skilled
Sculptor
Excerpt by Robert Menifee
for Desert Entertainer
What Is It? "Crude Chic II"
- that's the name of
sculptor James Hagerty's
upcoming show at his place
in Morongo Valley. It is an
oxymoron only an artist
could invent (a writer
wouldn't dare), but you
know, it works. His bits of
iron and such are crude and
common, yet the results are,
well... chic. No imported
marble or precious bronze
here - just wonderfully
transformed stuff.
Hagerty got his start making
totems on the family farm in
Thermal, Cal-ifornia, where
he grew up. "I was an
alfalfa farmer in the
hotspot in the nation. I
thought I’d made a permanent
escape at 19, when I went to
college, but family members
had passed away, and I found
myself back in Thermal at
age 45, on the old farm.
"There were plows, disks,
and the like scattered
around. That really
interested me, far more than
farming. When I needed a
site to scatter ashes for
family members, I erected
hodgepodge totems out of
found objects. That is how
it all began."
Now with the farm sold and
living on an idyllic spot in
Morongo Valley, Hagerty
spends his time on artistic
pursuits. And the years from
age 19 to 45? "Well,
accounting for one's life is
difficult," Hagerty says
with a chuckle, "I am a jazz
pianist and nightclub
musician. I worked steadily
in Colorado, and I do
various gigs – the former
Marquis Hotel and Le
Vallauris both in Palm
Springs, Vicki's of Santa
Fe in Indian Wells, Cunard's
Sand Bar of La Quinta - to
name a few. It (the music)
isn’t something I do full
time, since I’ve graduated
from the night club scene,
but I do enjoy playing
occasionally."
Also during those hardly
idle years: He was climbing
mountains and writing
philosophy and fiction. The
latter can be seen in the
novel, “Nut Grass.”
Back to sculpture, "The old
equipment on the farm
inspired me. I like metal
forms and love to recombine
them. What I do is called 'assem-blage.'
You take recognizable
objects and recombine them
in a new way, so that they
take on an altogether new
meaning. I like to challenge
the viewer with the
rearrangement of objects in
mind-bending ways," he says.
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James Hagerty's
NEW NOVEL
Nut Grass
NOW AVAILABLE
ONLINE
Norman,
nicknamed El Demente, “the crazy one," hitchhikes and
hops freight across the south-ern United States in search
of Ma - to him, MaBelle - and his ragtag family. Afflicted with
syphi-lis and a head wound from pimping at a Mexi-can
whorehouse just across
the Texas border, he struggles in both mindless and
lucid states to reach their dream home in the California
desert before the end...
MORE
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NOW AVAILABLE
PUBLISHED &
DISTRIBUTED
BY
CLICK
HERE FOR
SCULPTURE
INDEX
Contact:
James Hagerty
49988 Aspen Drive
P.O. Box 463
Morongo Valley
California 92256
760-363-6336
CLICK HERE
FOR MOST RECENT COLLECTION OF
RUST-IRON
ASSEMBLAGE
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