Steelworker
"Steelworker" is a monumentally-scaled polychrome fiberglass sculpture by Texas-born American artist Luis Jiménez (1940–2006). The sculpture depicts an African-American steelworker with a long ladle. At 147½" x 71 x 37½ inches, the brightly-colored piece makes a strong impact as it stands sentinel outside the Reverend Abraham Woods, Jr Boulevard (8th Avenue North) entrance to the Birmingham Museum of Art.
Jiménez, an El Paso native of Mexican descent, studied art and architecture at the University of Texas, earning a bachelor's degree in 1964. His interest in valorizing immigrant laborers not often depicted in monumental art, found expression in cast fiberglass resin, a technique familiar to Jiménez from the auto customization and body repair industry. As his work became appreciated he was invited to teach at the University of Arizona and University of Houston. Jiménez was killed in an accident in his studio in June 2006.
The Birmingham sculpture forges a strong tie in the Museum's collection to Birmingham's history as an iron and steel center. It was purchased in 2001 from Jiménez's studio with funds provided by Whatley Drake LLC, Lanny Vines, Baxley, Dillard, Dauphin & McKinight, J. Mark White, David Duval Shelby, Hare, Wynn, Newell & Newton, Steve Heninger, Shores & Lee, and the Museum Acquisition Fund.