New Mexico artist crushed by own sculpture

Luis Jimenez, a Latin American sculptor whose work adorns public places across the U.S., has died after being crushed by his own sculpture.

Part of the sculpture fell and pinned the 65-year-old artist against a steel support while it was being moved with a hoist at Jimenez's studio in Hondo, New Mexico, according to the Lincoln County Sheriff's office.

His 1969 work Man on Fire was a sculpture of a man in flames that drew its inspiration both from Buddhist monks in South Vietnam who immolated themselves and the Mexican story of Cuahtemoc, set afire by Spanish conquerors.

That work was displayed at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington. His work has also been seen at the Museum of Modern Art in New York and is on display in public sites at the University of New Mexico and Albuquerque's Martineztown.

His 1996 sculpture Fiesta Dancers, in front of the El Paso's Fine Arts Centre, is a colourful fibreglass work that depicts fiesta dancers. Several Jimenez sculptures are civic landmarks in his hometown.

CBC Arts: New Mexico artist crushed by own sculpture