Bozeman Daily Chronicle
http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com
Brian Joseph Persha was born October 24, 1943 in Shelby, Montana to Joseph S. Persha and Margret K. (Walsh) Persha. The family moved to Great Falls where he attended Ursuline Academy and graduated from Great Falls Central Catholic High School.
He attended Seattle University, Later graduating with an MA from University of Montana. He studied painting, ceramics, and sculpture, with an early foray into metalwork while assisting his mentor, Rudy Autio, in the bronze casting of the "Grizz". Those three fields converged into the singularity of Persha's one -of-a-kind talent and lifelong self-expression. Others with his training pursued an academic career, but the heady counterculture freedom of the 60's in Missoula permitted Brian's independent spirit to forever remain a "maverick", without ever having to cut his long hair!
Brian owned and operated successful studios in Billings, Bozeman, Gallatin Gateway, Red Lodge and Scottsdale, AZ. He was a resident potter at the Yellowstone Art Center in Billings and he taught at numerous institutions. His artwork was held in galleries and exhibitions nationally and internationally, including the Smithsonian Institute and the World Expo of 1992 in Seville, Spain. He lived throughout the West, but felt a strong resonance in southwestern Montanan, where ancestors of his had settled.
This extraordinarily gifted artist leaves behind a large and diverse body of quality works treasured by many collectors and friends. His distinctive signature style includes direct, fluid brushwork decoration, a "Persha barium blue" glaze, and carved mystical or mythological motifs. Those lucky enough to have befriended this gregarious character sensed his complexity: he was generous, flamboyant, philosophical, private, a contrarian, an iconoclast, curmudgeon, and a tender soul. Our friend was "multifaceted, protean, accomplished, and unconstrained". He had a large appetite for love and life that will live on through those he touched.
Brian found inspiration in Maui and was building bronze foundry there when declining health claimed his life on December 16, 2020. Brian chose to be cremated as fire was his transformative partner in creation. He is survived by his daughter Dejaleah Malone-Persha, his brother James Persha, and sister Jan Persha.
Donations in Brian's memory can be made to : Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples, Inc. or slamfestivals.org (Artist's Relief). A celebration of his life will take place at a later date to be announced on his Facebook page.
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