Making metal magic - the cowboy way

Sometimes art can be found at the bottom of a horse's foot. At least that's how Western artist John Phipps sees it. Phipps makes fantastic forms of all kinds from old horseshoes, deceptively simple-looking contraptions that this artist's gifted eye turns into everything from decorations to furniture.

But Phipps quickly points out that he's an artist second and cowboy first. To him, his Western art doesn't just amount to something pretty. It truly is an attempt to celebrate and preserve an entire style of living.

"After a horseshoe is changed off a horse, there's no reason to throw it away. Let's make art out of it." Phipps said. "The horseshoe to me means my way of life - the Western style. It's a heritage that we're losing in this society and I think it's worth saving."

Phipps truly is saving the past, too. He not only makes his art from horseshoes but gives a second life to pieces of weathered buildings, parts of old machines and other assorted antique bits of this and that. All become materials for his art.

"A lot of people have the same hobby as me, but they a lot of times use new things," he stressed, saying these works of art will one day become antiques themselves. "I love it."

Most folks in Yuma probably know Phipps less for his art and more for his years as sheriff of Yuma County or more recently as host of his own local TV talk show.

But people lucky enough to have some of Phipps' art in their homes just may argue that "artist" amounts to a pretty important badge as well. Phipps would probably disagree, but artist is certainly a title that this cowboy stands proud in his boots to be called. Phipps explained that there's enough room in the scope of being a cowboy to be tough, strong, driven - and artistic.

"A cowboy's way of life is one that he's serious about as a profession, but there are other things he likes to do - maybe to relieve stress. They might be a folklore storyteller or lots of cowboys are cowboy poets. The old hard-line cowboy that was out on the range years ago and maybe saw a bath every couple months, it wasn't because he wanted to but because it was his job."

The art bug actually nipped his heels back when Phipps was in high school. He would take dried-out pieces of the cholla cactus and use them to make coffee tables and smoking tables for pipe smokers. Phipps sold his unique furniture at local Western wear store, using that hard-earned cash to buy school clothes.

"I didn't consider that art back then, though. I was just having fun."

He really got into art just shortly after becoming sheriff. His wife, Donna, suggested that they take a painting class.

"I had found life when I was first sheriff starting to get a little stressful," he said, adding that painting did the trick. "I found it to be very relaxing. I really enjoyed it and, believe it or not, I was the only man in the class - didn't bother me."

Phipps knew he'd tackled the new medium when one of his Midwestern farm scenes was snatched up for $600 at a charity auction.

He ventured into metal art not long after and quickly discovered the now-beloved horseshoes. His pieces now take the form of table and floor lamps, coat racks, wall hangings and even huge chandeliers made up of horseshoes and wagonwheels. One of his biggest chandeliers boasted around 100 horseshoes in its design.

Yes, Phipps' art tends to get big sometimes. He's also been known to make six-foot Christmas trees. They take around 80 horseshoes to make and weigh in at around 250 pounds.

"I like the rough work with my hands. I like the welding aspect of it, cutting and shaping things with a torch."

In addition to the metal work, he's made benches from old bridge timbers. In fact, he made quite a few benches for the Yuma West Wetlands Park. At his ranch, right outside his nifty workshop, Phipps has built and installed a rustic saloon-style bar decorated with Western carvings and half-dollar coins.

His metal art has been sold at various local shops over the years, plus he used to have a booth every so often at the Yuma County Fair.

"I've had shops in Sedona and Scottsdale call me and want my stuff on consignment, but I don't want to do that."

Phipps gets the horseshoes from his own horses, plus local farriers give their old shoes. There's lot of them on hand at any given time and all kept on Phipps' property, not far from his workshop.

"When I was really making lots of stuff, I was probably going through 3,000-5,000 a year."

But these days Phipps isn't creating as much art as he did just a few years ago. That's because Phipps has reached a point in his life where he loves making art for friends, family and neighbors, but he's sure not looking to run any assembly line. After all, he is mostly retired now and he says being tied to the workbench and filling orders just sounds like plain, old work to him.

"I pretty much just do what I want to do. We travel a lot. We rodeo. We don't want to be tied down."

Besides, Phipps certainly isn't out there to make money at his art. He instead is just looking to make the world a prettier place - and to just make folks happy.

"I've probably given away as much stuff as I've sold," he said with a chuckle. "When somebody comes by and says 'I sure like that' and if they can't afford it I just say 'Well. here. It's yours.' That's just me. That's John Phipps."