Rick Switzer
Encyclopedia
The artist Rick Switzer (b. 1944) is a sculptor
born in Oshawa, Ontario
.
. Switzer works in bronze
although his repertoire also includes works in other materials including wood. He worked in the advertising industry for nearly a decade prior to dedicating himself to sculpting on a full-time basis in the early 1980s.
During the 1980s, Switzer focused on creating monumental size works, including The Pod jointly commissioned by Montreal Trust and Manufacturers Life Insurance Company. Created and unveiled in 1989 as tribute to orca whales and donated to the City of Vancouver
, "The Pod" is a bronze sculpture of two whales gently riding waves.
Commissioned by General Motors
of Canada from 1994 through 1996, Switzer created A Tribute to Excellence, a sculpture for General Motors of Canada Supplier of the Year Award. Upon winning "A Tribute to Excellence" for three consecutive years, Bethlehem Steel
commissioned Switzer to create Signature in Steel.
Rick Switzer has been a member of The Sculptors Society of Canada
since 1990.
Sculpture
Sculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
born in Oshawa, Ontario
Oshawa, Ontario
Oshawa is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the Lake Ontario shoreline. It lies in Southern Ontario approximately 60 kilometres east of downtown Toronto. It is commonly viewed as the eastern anchor of both the Greater Toronto Area and the Golden Horseshoe. It is now commonly referred to as the most...
.
Life and work
Switzer graduated from Ontario College of Art in 1972, majoring in SculptureSculpture
Sculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
. Switzer works in bronze
Bronze
Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
although his repertoire also includes works in other materials including wood. He worked in the advertising industry for nearly a decade prior to dedicating himself to sculpting on a full-time basis in the early 1980s.
Example Works
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, "The Pod" is a bronze sculpture of two whales gently riding waves.
Commissioned by General Motors
General Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
of Canada from 1994 through 1996, Switzer created A Tribute to Excellence, a sculpture for General Motors of Canada Supplier of the Year Award. Upon winning "A Tribute to Excellence" for three consecutive years, Bethlehem Steel
Bethlehem Steel
The Bethlehem Steel Corporation , based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, was once the second-largest steel producer in the United States, after Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based U.S. Steel. After a decline in the U.S...
commissioned Switzer to create Signature in Steel.
Rick Switzer has been a member of The Sculptors Society of Canada
Sculptors' Society of Canada
The Sculptors Society of Canada promotes and exhibits contemporary Canadian sculpture.Founded by Canadian sculptors Frances Loring, Florence Wyle, Elizabeth Wyn Wood, Wood's teacher and husband Emanuel Hahn, Henri Hébert and Alfred Laliberté, the Sculptors Society of Canada has been exhibiting...
since 1990.