The work of Shamrock Acosta doesn’t take long to jump out at you.
Bold yet unapologetically playful, Acosta’s pieces are an expression of synergy between all of the best elements of art and are largely created from found or repurposed items. A saw with a grinning face. A robot with the body of an antique radio. But the unusual fruits of his labor don’t mean that he immediately always sees himself as an artist.
“This is by accident,” Acosta said of his second career. “It’s an anomaly as far as I’m concerned. There are no so-called artists in my family. I’m the lost link.”
Much like his reshaped and reformed objects, Acosta himself has found a new purpose and meaning through his artwork. For years the Orcutt-based sculptor worked as a general contractor, spending more than 40 years doing construction at the homes of some of the world’s most wealthy and famous people, such as actor Kirk Douglas, whom Acosta recalled fondly. But the celebrity world never really went to his head.
“I’m just a very simple guy,” Acosta said. “I guess I never really understood where I really was. It was just unbelievable. I saw amazing art, and I was given amazing opportunities with these people.”
A stint working for famed Los Angeles designer Rose Tarlow showed the contractor a wealth of possibilities when it came to creating unusual projects or pieces for home and office spaces. Acosta’s projects and work over his decades in contracting ranged from cabinet installation to more unique client requests, such as turning a railroad caboose into a bed.
When it comes to describing the origins of his artistic drive, he finds himself at a loss for words. He said he closed a chapter of his life when he retired four years ago as a builder and creator and didn’t think he would ever pursue it again. Nor did he ever see himself becoming an artist.
“I wasn’t really a painter,” Acosta said. “I’m a fish out of water when it comes to the art scene.”
An ill-fated attempt at a yard sale is what ultimately launched his second career as an artist. Acosta tried to have a sale to get rid of some of his old carpentry tools. But the sale proved be almost entirely fruitless and it was then that a creative spark ignited within Acosta. He decided that he would try to reinvent his tools into something else.
“I took them apart,” Acosta said. “I re-created them. I made something that looked like a wolf. I made a little robot.”
A trip to a junkyard with a close friend also helped him begin to see possibilities in discarded or found art. A small sprocket became an eye, wires became fingers, and metal began to feel alive.
“It was like magic,” Acosta said. “I never had that feeling. It just traveled through my mind.”
Later on, a woman looking for a unique birthday present for her husband stumbled upon one of the sculptures Acosta had designed to resemble the iconic robot from the television series Lost in Space. He saw it as his “firstborn,” one of his originals, and he was initially reluctant to let it go. He finally parted with it, earning a little less than $200 for the sale.
“That was my first real sale,” Acosta said. “I thought, ‘Well maybe there is something to this then.’”
Even as his sales have grown, Acosta hasn’t let go of his blue collar roots as an artist. Many of the ideas come from experiences he’s had on the job as well as his expertise with tools and construction materials that others might find burdensome or difficult to work with. The elemental nature of his work is strong—steel and copper and other mixed metals feel almost absorbent to human connection.
But make no mistake; Acosta’s work isn’t kitsch. These aren’t toy figures cutesily clamoring for anthropomorphism. They are achingly antique, fixed to a time and purpose no longer warranted by human consumption. They are a testament to consumerism, innovation, and evolution all at once.
What Acosta has really thrived on since becoming an artist is his own staunch belief in himself and the possibilities of his work. He seems to see endless possibilities, not just in the discarded or seemingly broken elements of his art he gathers, but in himself as well. He said that’s what drove him to pursue art.
“I didn’t see that I had limits,” Acosta said. “I wasn’t limited as far as what I wanted to do. I wouldn’t take anyone telling me I couldn’t do something.”
Arts and Lifestyle Writer Rebecca Rose is made entirely out of old junk. Contact her at rrose@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Jan 24-31, 2019.