Rush Whitacre

Hello, my name is Rush Whitacre.  I spent much of my younger life admiring my parents and the work they did for others.  My father is a retired MD who delivered over 7000 babies in his 59 years of practicing medicine in his small town office, my mother is an MD who practiced medicine as an ER Doctor and then with my father in his practice until they both retired.  I grew up in a very driven family, one filled with ambitious and intelligent individuals who excel in anything they do.  At one point in my life I could count 11 family members who were all doctors and who were all as close to me as an uncle or an aunt or a sister or a brother.  I spent many years believing that in order to be someone I had to go to Med School and become a doctor.  I have the utmost respect for my parents, and I always wanted to be able to give to a community like they did.  I have always been amazed at how admired they were by their community.  I too wanted to be admired like them.  I knew that being a doctor would be amazing, however, in my last year of Biochemistry, after applying for the MCAT and applying to Med Schools, I took my first art class.  I dropped out of my school where I was majoring in Biochemistry and went to a school where I then took nothing but studio art classes for 5 years.  At first I thought that my father was heartbroken, that I had somehow destroyed his dream of what I could have been, even though he never really pushed me to be a doctor.  The pressure was always there because of the respect my parents commanded.  Towards the end of my first year of being a full time art student I discovered all of the drawings that I had thrown away in the trash were actually being taken out of the trash and being hidden by my father in his closet.  I asked him what he was doing with my trash and he said that my trash was his treasure, that he saw greatness in my work and that I should throw nothing away.  I now have my MFA from the University of Cincinnati, along with four other degrees. 

My decision to drop out of the race to be a doctor can be summed up by the second sentence to come out of my first art professors mouth.  His name is Daniel McMannis, and his first sentence was scripted and only about his office number, telephone number and his office hours if we should ever need him.  Dan's Second Sentence was this; "If you take this class seriously, do all the assignments as I give them to you and correct your mistakes with the advice that I give you, your vision of the world will change forever."  I was smug and let out a little laugh which grabbed his attention.  one day in the fifth week of that quarter I found myself walking outside staring at shadows and the dark sides of trees and anything and everything around me with new eyes.  My vision, my life was changed forever and I knew that I would never be the same.  I have always been an artist, and I have always been creative, always building and always making, but it wasn't until my first art class that I knew without a doubt that being an artist was what I always have been and what I always will be.

Mom, Dad, I love you very much, thank you for always believing in me, and supporting me, and thank you for always trying to do what was in my best interest.

Dan, Thank you for being such a wonderful inspiration to myself and countless other students who took your classes seriously.  You opened up my eyes to the world I had been missing, and I can't thank you enough for helping me to see, literally see.

Here on my web page you will get a glimpse into my art practice, my paintings and sculptures and installations.  I am always on the lookout to do collaborative works with others.  My paintings are large and vibrant, my installations are time consuming and at times exhaustive.  Please, take your time and enjoy.

Currently, I am living in Beverly Ohio as an artist and a Writer.  My days are filled mostly with writing and editing my books while I sit at mcdonalds and being on call to help my dad with anything he shall need help with.  I moved back here to help take care of my 90 year old dad until the end of his days.  

"Life is never more fun than when you are the underdog competing against the giants"