Meet Andy Rice | Radio host and Steampunk artist
We had the good fortune of connecting with Andy Rice and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Andy, Let’s talk about principles and values – what matters to you most?
Honesty, Because it’s at the heart of all morality
Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
The best lesson I’ve learned is that a great day job will give you a lot of artistic freedom. My Tiny Shop is funded through my work in broadcasting, so I’ve never had to struggle with affording my art. That said, the Tiny Shop was built in a scrapyard. I use castoff bits of copper and brass from our local metal recycling yard, which I buy for pennies on the dollar. That not only cheaply fills my parts bins, but also my desire to find beauty in things considered old, useless and ugly. So my journey is not a linear one. I don’t have a definition for success. I find joy in the creation of art and that’s my reward. Selling a piece allows me to indulge in other hobbies or buy more scrap, but, much to my wife’s disappointment I’ve probably donated more pieces to charity auctions than I’ve sold. I’ve never had a plan for the Tiny Shop. If I can create until I die, then I’ve been successful.
If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’m an outdoors person, and I live on the high plains of Northeast Colorado, so I’d be dragging my friend all over the prairie to watch sunrises, sunsets and thunderstorms with Blaize, my boxer/pit bull. Logan County has 1,838 square miles of rolling grass and we’d cover a lot of it in a week.
Every Friday in July, the Logan County Arts League offers July Jamz, a concert on the county courthouse lawn in the middle of downtown Sterling. Those concerts are attended by thousands of people every summer, so that’s where you’d see people. Downtown Sterling also has one microbrewery and a distillery opening soon so even though I don’t drink, I know where a person can. We’d have to hit Simkins Parlour for a sandwich and ice cream. The Overland Trail Museum is a remarkable institution and is worth spending an entire day in. If you can get a hour with curator Kay Rich, you will be a better person for it. If the opportunity to help out at a local rope-and-drag branding arises, that would also be on the list. The Old West still lives in Logan County.
The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My wife of 29 years, Janice, is unfailingly honest and patient.
Image Credits
All images courtesy of the Tiny Shop
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