James Hedges III

James R. Hedges III (1942–2014) was an American wood carver and art dealer. He produced and dealt in art primarily of the Folk and Outsider genres, and was the founder of the Rising Fawn Folk Art Gallery.

Early life Jimmy Hedges was born into a Tennessee industrialist family in 1942. Hedges became a self-taught chainsaw woodcarver, and later a dealer/gallerist for other self-taught artists in the medium. He came upon the artform after taking a bet from folk artist Homer Green, who challenged him to see if he could do it. He later showed his carvings to a gallerist in Memphis, who encouraged him to start incorporating folk art into his repertoire. and exhibited the work of their artists in surrounding urban centers. Hedges actively promoted the artists with fliers and other printed materials, and sold their work at festivals. Adjacent to the gallery Hedges also ran the Rising Fawn Folk Art Sculpture Garden. He represented more than four hundred artists during his career.

Many of the artists that Hedges represented were disabled in some manner, some mentally ill and others physically impaired. He also represented artists serving time in prison. The archives and papers of Hedges' personal records and the gallery became a part of the Smithsonian Archives of American Art in 2016, two years after his death. The work contained within the collection includes work from 1980 through 2014, on his property.