God's Little AcreDella Wilcox (1900 - 1987)
Unknown
10160 S. Old Nogales Hwy , Tucson, Arizona, 10160, United States
1950's
About the Artist/Site
Della Wilcox spent three decades bringing to life her vision on an acre of land in Tucson, Arizona. God’s Little Acre, as she dubbed it, consisted of two concrete and glass bottle structures as well as a three-room house made of large stones and concrete. God’s Little Acre also has a replica of the Thorney General Store and post office complete with a picture of Richard Nixon which reminded Della of her hometown. It took Della nearly a year to finish constructing her first glass bottle structure, after which she immediately moved on to the second one. God’s Little Acre was full of oddities collected and carefully arranged by Wilcox over nearly 30 years. Her collection included a wide variety of dump finds, including stuffed animals, wagon wheels, pottery shards, turkey wishbones, and taxidermied animals. According to a City Magazine article in October 1987, after Della passed away, God’s Little Acre went on sale for $47,000. Della's environment had already been stripped bare of many of her collections. It is likely that nothing remains of Della Wilcox’s thirty years of labor and love. As the City Magazine article states, "Folk art and folk artists are too often brief flickerings of talent and beauty that the booming city decours."
Narrative by Rachel Allison, 2022
Sources:
- Della Wilcox file in cabinet 1 drawer A Arizona section article written by City Magazine in October 1987
- Online version: City Magazine, Tucson, Arizona, October 1987 : City Magazine : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive pages 49-50
Contributors
Materials
Glass bottle and concrete structures, wagon wheels, blacksmithing tools, and stuffed animals, taxidermy, kitchen equipment.
SPACES Archives Holdings
14 Slides, 1 folder with clipping
Map & Site Information
10160 S. Old Nogales Hwy
Tucson, Arizona, 10160
us
Latitude/Longitude: 32.0666017 / -110.9540399
Nearby Environments
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