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Rich's art journey began amidst the rugged beauty and tranquil wildlife of Colorado, where he was born and raised. His childhood was nomadic, a navy brat’s life filled with coast-to-coast relocations until his father retired and settled the family permanently in the Centennial State. It was here, enveloped by the majestic Rockies and serene fishing lakes, that Rich's deep love for nature and its flora and fauna took root—a love that would become a central theme in his artistic career.
The artistic spark ignited early for Rich, at the tender age of nine. A comic book introduced him to a world of potential when he discovered an invitation on its back cover to draw a horse and submit his sketch. Though his father's pragmatic intervention curtailed any formal lessons—"no way in Hell," as he put it—the encouragement Rich received in return stoked a fervent passion for art that would not be easily extinguished.
Without any familial precedence in arts, Rich's journey was decidedly self-made. High school education continued into an associate degree in Mechanical Engineering, a path critically different from his artistic aspirations. Yet, his technical education would later complement his self-taught artistic techniques—a blend of trial and error refined by a solitary two-day workshop with noted artist Gregg Murray. His perseverance bore fruit when he earned recognition as a Signature Artist with the International Society of Scratchboard Artists.
Post-education saw Rich navigating life in financially constrained circumstances as the son of Navy personnel—grappling with tight budgets but finding solace in artistic endeavors whenever opportunity allowed. Art took a backseat following a brief stint capturing life's moments through the lens of an SLR camera, a gift from his wife Connie. Wildlife photography soon augmented his troves of inspirations, blending Rich's burgeoning technical skills with his love for the nation's natural splendor.
As the years progressed, Rich's creative needs found another outlet—metal sculpture—enabled by Connie’s timely gift of a plasma cutter. Countless steel wall art designs filled their garage until the couple began weekend art shows, initially to declutter, then increasingly as a full-time trade. However, the onset of West Nile Virus and a subsequent forced retirement introduced yet another pivot—the discovery of Scratchart. Inspired by an adept artist at a local show and encouraged by an immersive weekend workshop, Rich embarked on a journey into the intricate world of Scratchart, a path he fully embraced in 2010.
Scratchboard, an ancient art form dating back to Egyptian times, became Rich's medium of choice. Its complexity and slow, meticulous nature resonated with him—hours poured into mere square inches to reveal nature's raw beauty. Rich’s work, primarily featuring the wildlife of Colorado and Wyoming, is a tribute to his surroundings and experiences. His subjects range from the smallest hummingbirds and butterflies to the grand American bison and elegant horses.
Rich's creative process is both organic and deliberate. Inspirations culled from nature, magazines, and personal photographs are transformed into tangible art through a laborious process involving Ampersand Scratchboards, clayboard inks, and a diverse array of tools—xacto knives, tattoo needles, wire brushes, and more. The tactile pleasure of etching through black ink to reveal soft white clay contrasts, coupled with occasional splashes of clayboard ink colors, brings his compositions to vivid life.
Rich has garnered numerous accolades throughout his career, including 1st Place at Art for the Ages and Queeny Park, in addition to other notable awards. His presence at elite juried art shows like the Arizona Fine Art Expo and the Teton Village Art Fair underscores his stature as a serious and committed artist.
Outside the art world, Rich's life is woven with threads of nature and family. Fishing expeditions, camping trips, and avid support for their local AHL Hockey team, the Colorado Eagles, punctuate his life with joy and relaxation. Rich's artistry, though profound and inspired, reflects a deeper value system—one that treasures life’s simplest pleasures and nature's unimpeachable beauty.
His goals, suffused with humor and ambition, include everything from winning the lottery to perfecting the intricate details of human skin in his scratchart. As Rich contemplates his future, he wishes to continue pushing artistic boundaries well into his eighties, blending the simplicity of lights and shadows with sophisticated scratch techniques, echoing his love for the outdoors and his unwavering dedication to capturing its essence on scratchboard.