ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: Randy Bates & Rylee Petkau

Illustrations & Pottery
by Randy Bates & Rylee Petkau

Presented by Airdrie Public Library September 1 to October 31, 2013.

Randy Bates is a local artist, born in Savannah Georgia in 1964, who moved frequently as a child which allowed him to see a bit of Canada, including Airdrie during his junior high years.  This experience led him and his wife to choose Airdrie as the place to raise their family for the past eleven years.  His supportive extended family lives nearby in Calgary.  

Randy enjoys time with his family, hiking, camping and swimming, where he finds much of his inspiration.  Another creative outlet is his work creating custom leather interiors for Wright Restyling and Subaru/Jaguar.  Recently he found himself reading numerous books, studying and practicing illustration which led to practicing different art forms, teaching himself the art of art.  Though he did briefly study oil painting with Ed Martinuk of Channel 13 television, he finds his joy in working with the vibrant layers of coloured pencil.

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Artist Rylee Petkau resides in the Airdrie area, home for the past 30 years, with her husband and three boys.  Always looking for ways to stretch and grow her creative side, she has been known to try her hand at any art form and travel anywhere to develop it. 

Her travels have taken her across Canada to Germany, Italy, West and South Africa. Rylee’s interests and talents span from paintings with acrylic on anything that can be painted on to tattoo design and henna. Currently she spends most of her creative energy working in her small studio creating pottery and teaching the art of clay for numerous different organizations and camps in Calgary, Airdrie and area.

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