Gary C. Hatcher
Gary C. Hatcher studied ceramics at The University of North Texas where he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in ceramics and at Texas A&M at Commerce where he received a Master of Fine Arts degree in sculpture. He apprenticed in ceramic art studios in Devon, England, with
Michael Leach and David Leach from 1976 to 1979 as well as shorter apprenticeship experiences in France and Greece. He currently holds the B. J. and Dub Riter Professorship in Art at The University of Texas at Tyler where he has taught in the Department of Art and Art History since 1992.
After returning from England in 1979 he has maintained a studio in east Texas with his wife, Daphne Roehr Hatcher, also a ceramic artist, firing most works in a Bourry box wood fired kiln. He continues to balance teaching and a very active involvement in the creation of ceramic works at his studio.
More images of Gary's pots, his studio practices and the Bourry Box kiln, built in 1985, can be found here.
On teaching at The University of Texas at Tyler Hatcher has said, “Teaching has become a part of my journey. After working undisturbed in my studio for twelve years I began teaching ceramics at The University of Texas at Tyler in 1992 and it has become the place where I share knowledge and experience I have gained in the last forty years as a ceramic artist. I am dedicated to providing the best learning environment possible for students. I want to challenge students to think of art in a cross-cultural way. I want my students to see creative expression as integrated and not segmented by material or discipline. Although much of my training was as an apprentice in art studios in Europe, the university offers the most effective environment for learning the ways of art. It is a place where ideas are exchanged and the process of creative exploration is pasted on to a new generation of those in pursuit of knowledge and understanding of our world through art.”
He has had articles published in Ceramics Art and Perception, Ceramics Technical, Ceramics Monthly, The Studio Potter and American Craft. His works have been included in over a dozen books in print. He exhibits widely both nationally and internationally and has participated in over 300 exhibitions. Major exhibitions of his ceramic works have been held in venues such as Baylor University, Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, Houston Center for Contemporary Crafts, Austin College, Tyler Museum of Art and Irving Arts Center. His works are in numerous private and museum collections. Hatcher has curated a number of exhibitions of ceramic works for The University of Texas at Tyler and the Tyler Museum of Art.
