In a small quiet room towards the edge of the AWC campus, artists obtain the chance to display their work and preserve culture by displaying their work.

Minnesota native, now art-town Bisbee, AZ., resident Tate Rich, runs the Art Department of Cochise College on the Douglas Campus. Rich’s closing art gallery reception was held April 15 from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m.

The tall, long-haired sandy blonde, prized ceramic artist, charmed all attendees within the four white walls of the tiny room as he spoke about his personal beliefs on art and occasionally laughed loudly with AWC Professor of Fine Arts, Angel Luna.

The Gallery was filled with a number of vases, bowls, nests, platters and pleasantly stacked glossy sculptures with an Asian flavor. The colors ranged from turquoise, coppers, deep greens, black and rustic browns. Some vases were displayed as half glazed and half showing their natural rough ceramic texture. The structural genius of Rich’s hard work was clearly present in this exhibit. Each piece in the gallery was distinct from the others; each pattern, texture, glaze, angle, and even the indentations all contained the ceramicist’s personal flair.   Piece #23 was a dazzling mixture of layered clays, glazed only from the inside. The wavy patterns in the vase made it my personal favorite! With a mischievous grin Rich says, “Art is a special thing we kind of live for.” Rich will not limit himself to a specific medium, whether it is sculpting ceramics, clay or using glass work. He even designed an entire home of his own.

In late March of this year, Rich presented a few demonstrations of his techniques to Luna’s Ceramic 1 classes. One student calls Rich’s techniques as a “new-wave of pottery.” Inspired by his work, some of the ceramic students are trying some of Rich’s techniques. Rich’s own creative process begins with a single idea which will develop into a beautiful piece of art, fine art, no doubt. One giggling AWC Ceramic student said, “He flirts with the clay!”