BIOGRAPHY

Richard grew up in Canada’s prairie province of Saskatchewan—an area of vast flatlands, rolling hilled parkland,  northern forests, extraordinarily beautiful skyways and a political culture given to experimentation with social organization and health and social policies (the first administrative area in North America that established a [public] medical care insurance program). In addition to being an artist, Richard is a sociologist, social policy analyst and non-fiction writer. Dr. Thatcher is the author of 5 books dealing with sociological, psychological and community development solutions to various personal and social problems. He has served as local, regional and national policy advisor to Aboriginal organizations and, in this capacity, has prepared hundreds of advisory reports and program development designs.

Richard lives with Myrna Martyniuk (his spouse and best friend) in a village in the Qu’Appelle Valley, 20 miles north of Regina. Their home is a former 2-classroom, brick schoolhouse. It was originally converted to a home and studio in the late 1960s by the well-known sculptor Vic Cicansky and his late spouse. The building now includes, as mentioned, a working office, as well as a studio, a small workshop and a creative garden and tranquility space (both works in [very slow] progress).

Richard has four children, with two in partnership with Judith Martin and two with Myrna Martyniuk. His oldest, Megan, is a script writer and producer in Hollywood, who has recently sold a series of her own making to the new Apple streaming service (the series will star Brie Larson). His second, Carlene, is an artist, designer and architect in Toronto, where she lectures and practices her profession. She has been involved in various community-based projects and has been active in promoting bicycle use in that city. His third, Alicia, just successfully finished medical school and will be training to practice family medicine with a special interest in working with patients who have developmental disabilities. His son, Dylan, is in business in Kelowna, B.C., where he also enjoys his stand-up comedy work in local clubs.

Over the six plus decades of his life, Richard has participated in various individual and group shows in which he has exhibited his art works. In the 1990s, he was affiliated with the former Verve Gallery in Regina. He has also contributed dozens of art pieces to fund-raising auctions in support of various charitable and political causes and has sold and gifted privately. Richard is (semi) retired from the consulting and applied social science work that occupied most of his working energies for the balance of his adult life. He is now concentrating his time working on a new book and a play, as well as putting much more time into his art practice.