Richard L. Berghammer was born in 1940 and grew-up on a farm in Northern Saskatchewan near Lloydminster. He is a self-taught artist who was inspired by, and learned his unique use of the leather medium from his grandfather, Ignutes Wack (a local harness maker). By the early age of six, Berghammer completed his first leather painting of a Blackbird featuring bas-relief workmanship.
Berghammer's most prolific work involves his love for wildlife and experiences observing various animals. He is known for transforming his wildlife experiences into realistic and sometimes monumental paintings rendered on an intricately cut and 3-dimensional leather canvas. His process includes obtaining thick leather from England or Venezuela, dampening (and steaming) the surface, then moulding and meticulously cutting the composition with a knife.
In some cases, Berghammer's leather artwork borders on 'sculptural'. For instance, "Oxen of the High Arctic" depicts a grouping of these animals in which the highest relief figure projects from the picture plane at least one inch. This is truly unique in the sense that most leather artworks do not project from the surface more than 1/16th of an inch. Below is an example of the extent to which Berghammer's work is 'sculpted'. The artwork titled "Old Gabbie" was tilted next to light to show the high relief of the 'worked' leather.
His earlier works employ high-spirited dyes, which are extremely difficult to work with, employing both patience and skill. The amount of time to cut the composition and apply the pigment requires hundreds of hours in total to finish a single work. Berghammer's later works are cut and moulded in the same manner, but are painted with acrylic. His most recent paintings are acrylic-on-canvas and are captured in the Richard Berghammer collection of 'limited edition' prints - a body-of-work, which is expanding everyday to accommodate the increasing demand.
Berghammer has been featured in newspaper and magazine articles across Canada and his artworks have been displayed at various museums and galleries around the world including: the Barr Colony Museum, Lloydminster (1985-2000); Civic Centre, Elliot Lake and Rockefeller Center, New York City - among others. Richard Berghammer currently lives in Elliot Lake and suffers from multiple sclerosis, a disease that has altered his ability to continue working.
