Big Tex, (sculpture).

Big Tex, (sculpture).

Bridges, Jack, sculptor.

Big Tex, (sculpture).

Painted fiberglass, papier-mache head and hands, orange fabric shirt, denim pants and leather boots over a steel and wire support.

Approx. H. 52 ft.

Colossal figure of a cowboy dressed in blue jeans, Western-style shirt, boots and a white Stetson hat. He waves with his proper right hand and his proper left arm is extended. The head features a movable jaw that works in synchronation with an announcer's voice.

Figure male -- Full length

Occupation -- Other -- Cowboy

Outdoor Sculpture -- Texas -- Dallas

Coadministered by City of Dallas, Department of Park & Recreation, Division of Cultural Affairs, 1925 Elm Street, Dallas, Texas 75201

Coadministered by State Fair of Texas Association, P. O. Box 150009, Dallas, Texas 75315

Located Fair Park, Dallas, Texas

Formerly in the collection of City of Kerens, Chamber of Commerce, Kerens, Texas 1949-1952.

This sculpture is on display only during the month of October for the State Fair of Texas, held in Fair Park. Every year it is disassembled, stored and repaired as needed. The piece was unavailable for a condition assessment at the time of the SOS! survey. This sculpture was originally created in 1949 as a Santa Claus for the City of Kerens, Texas. In 1952, the City sold the sculpture to the Fair for $750. That year, the artist was commissioned to transform the Santa into a cowboy. In 1953, a motor was installed to make the jaw move in time to an announcer's voice. IAS files include a brochure from the fair.

Save Outdoor Sculpture, Texas, Dallas survey, 1993.

The information provided about this artwork was compiled as part of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture database, designed to provide descriptive and location information on artworks by American artists in public and private collections worldwide.

Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture, Smithsonian American Art Museum, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 970, Washington, D.C. 20013-7012

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