Carl Wagner, sculptor of thousands of bronze animals and birds, died July 5 in Naples, Fla., from complications following heart surgery. He was 72.
Service arrangements are pending, said his son, Rodd Wagner of Salida.
Wagner sculpted and cast limited-edition bronzes at what he called his Hurricane Hill Art Works, 5 miles west of Salida. He chose the name because of the winds, said his daughter, Tracy Beach, also of Salida.
Wagner came to Colorado in the 1970s with the aim of opening his own foundry. He did that and then started doing his own art.
“He just switched gears when he moved to Colorado,” said Rodd Wagner. “He thought originally of making something to sell; he had never been to art school.”
But Wagner’s work has been shown around the country, and for decades he and his wife, Barbara, traveled in a van to art festivals, his son said.
Carl Wagner’s work ranged from thimbles and 6-inch-high bronze mugs, or steins, to life-size buffalo, eagles and other birds.
Two mugs wound up in the hands of Ronald Reagan when he was president. One of Wagner’s customers sent them to the president, and Reagan later sent him a note and a medal.
Wagner did many commissioned pieces, all eagle statues, for American Airlines, Anheuser-Busch and the Federal Reserve Bank. The companies used them for awards. His works are in several parks.
Wagner worked in a 5,000-square-foot foundry he built near his house outside Salida. “He designed and built all his own machinery,” said his daughter. The work “was very labor intensive,” said his son.
Carl Wagner was born in Glassboro, N.J., on Dec. 4, 1938.
He had various jobs, including raising tomatoes, running a plant nursery and inventing before turning to sculpture.
He and his wife divided their time between their homes in Naples, Fla., and Salida.
In addition to his wife, son and daughter, he is survived by two grandchildren; two sisters, Eleanor Atkinson of Cody, Wyo., and Ann Yarick of Santa Fe; and a brother, John Wagner of New Jersey.
Virginia Culver: 303-954-1223 or vculver@denverpost.com
