Biography

Rick Parsons was born in Galveston, Texas. He received his BFA in Art from Stephen F. Austin State University and an MFA in Sculptural Ceramics from the University of Dallas, where he also has served as a visiting professor.

In Rick’s sculpture he focus on the effect of environmental pollutants on the body using three materials as metaphor. Clay is the body and biology; saltwater heals, preserves and destroys; and steel is the social and spiritual structure that we build our lives around. The clay forms are first soaked in saltwater to absorb the salt as the body absorbs the chemicals in its surroundings. The clay objects are then placed on to steel plates where the salt causes the steel to oxidize. Steel is a material that is perceived as having great strength yet can be weaken by a material as simple as salt. The irony of the sculpture is that the same material that is used as the healing agent is also the catalyst for destruction.

Rick is currently the Sculpture Program Coordinator at Anderson Ranch Arts Center. His sculpture has been exhibited throughout the country and was recently featured in a solo show in the Charles and Dorothy Clark Gallery at the University of Texas – Pan America. In 2003 Rick was the cover artist for the American Literary Review and in May 2007 his sculpture was the focus of an article in Sculpture magazine. Rick is a mixed media artist, whose work has been exhibited in galleries and shows worldwide along with being a visiting artist at Colorado College, San Jose State University, University of Miami, and Arizona State University.