Farmer-Artist Turns Junk Into Money

Farmer-Artist Turns Junk Into Money AG WORLD Ag World 23-3-24 Turning junk into money isn't easy but Robert and Donna Cumpston have done it. The Colfax, Ill., couple, who farmed until 1983, started turning old scrap iron into animal sculptures in the early 1970's. They now go to shows all over the U.S. where their sculptures sell for as much $10,000. The sculptures come in all shapes and sizes. Some of the smallest are the baby chicks he makes, while the largest are probably the 17-ft. tall giraffes. The average price is $200 to $350. Cumpston makes cows, sows, herons, horses, hippos, ducks, geese, bunnies and even armadillo's. Some other animals are made on a custom basis. For example, last year he made a flying pig for a woman in Virginia. "She married a man that said he would marry again only when pigs fly," Cumpston says. So she ordered the pig for the wedding and her husband loved it, he says. The sculpting business has become full-time for the Cumpstons, with Robert creating the art and his wife, Donna, managing the business. Most of Cumpston's art is created from old 2 and 4-row planters and cultivators. "I prefer old metal because it's already weathered and, therefore, ideal for outdoor art," he says. He depends on a couple of people who gather scrap to get him the parts he needs. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Robert and Donna Cumpston, R.R. 2, Colfax, Ill. 61728 (ph 309 723-4051).

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