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About the Artist,
Richard Bergquist
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Richard Bergquist
was born in San Diego in 1948. He has
always had an interest in painting and
ceramics. As a child, he lived in
California, Virginia and Hawaii, with his
Navy officer father, mother, two sisters
and his twin brother.
Richard attended San Diego State College
and Chouinard's School of Art which later
became the Los Angeles Institute of the
Arts.
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In 1970 he married fellow artist Susi Nagoda and
together they have created unique Southwestern Art
for 30 + years.
His Santos have evolved from simple garden
sculptures to popular collectibles. His interest in
native clays and folk-art have kept his works
continually fresh in style and technique.
Richard's work appears in collections world wide,
from the humblest of homes to the grandest of
churches. "The
Santos," he explains, "are extensions of the
history of man. Some were famous and good people
who helped their fellow man with their benevolence
and faith. Others are extensions of the folk
beliefs of the people and times before the birth of
Christ, but whoever the Santos depict, they always
have the well being of mankind as their first
priority."
I hope you enjoy looking at Richard's Santos as
much as he enjoys making them.
His wife, Susi.
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Rick has like to work in earth materials
for as long as he can remember.
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"Play was an intortant part of work for
Rick and his twin brother, Randy.
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Rick's Grandma Johnson influenced him, as
she had worked in ceramics and painting
since the early 1900's.
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Rick, Randy and their dad
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The view from Rick's studio window
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Rick and his wife, Susi, when they were first
married.
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Rick and clay collecting tools
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Rick and Keko, one of his dogs, collecting
"pond" clay
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Rick collecting a special layer of
clay
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How They Are Made.
Seven years ago Richard and
his wife, Susi began to make their own clays from
scratch. They went on clay digging expeditions
(much as the Native American has done for
centuries), armed with shovels and buckets (a
modern introduction) to dig up their clays. They
return to their studio in Eastern Arizona to blend
and mix these clays with water.
Next they age them and wedge the clay into the
proper consistency for use. Richard 'throws',
extrudes and hand builds the pieces he needs for
the saints/santos figures.
He hand constructs most of the attributes which are
important to the recognition of each saint. He
carefully dries all of the pieces after which he
hand paints them with pigments he has formulated
from the clay we dug , plus commercial chemicals
(like cobalt). At that stage the figures are
carefully 'fired' in electric kilns at temperatures
exceeding 2100 degrees F.
In his wood shop, Richard carefully constructs the
'nichos' on which his saints/santos are mounted. He
paints, decorates and antiques each one so it is an
appropriate background for the individual saint. In
his studio he mounts the Santos with a ceramic-wood
glue to the niche (nicho) along with its correct
attributes. Now the piece is ready for display or
be sent to it's new home.
Recently Richard started making saints which do not
need to be mounted, but hang directly on the wall.
These are excellent weather-proof figures for the
garden or other outside areas.
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