Richard Elmer "Rick" Bartow (December 16, 1946 – April 2, 2016) was a Native American artist and a member of the Mad River band of the Wiyot Tribe, who are indigenous to Humboldt County, California. He primarily created pastel, graphite, and mixed media drawings, wood sculpture, acrylic paintings, drypoint etchings, monotypes, and a small number of ceramic works. Early life Richard Elmer Bartow was born in Newport, Oregon, on December 16, 1946, to Mabel and Richard Bartow. His father's family was of the Mad River band of Wiyot. In Oregon, the family developed close ties with the local Siletz Indian community. When Rick was five, his father died. His non-Indian mother then married Andrew Mekemson, whom Bartow considered to be a beloved second father. Bartow became interested in art at an early age, encouraged by his aunt Amy Bartow, who studied art and art education at the University of Washington. His love for art continued through high school and extended to music when he took up the guitar and bongos. Personal life Bartow attended Western Oregon University and graduated in 1969 with a degree in secondary art education. In 1969, he was drafted into the army and sent to Vietnam. He served in the Vietnam war from 1969 to 1971 as a teletype operator and as a musician in a military hospital, for which he was awarded the Bronze Star. Art career After several small shows in the Newport area, Rick Bartow was offered a solo exhibition in 1985 by William Jamison of Jamison/Thomas Gallery, who operated galleries in Portland, Oregon, and New York City. Bartow exhibited frequently at both locations and elsewhere, and his work began to garner national attention. Following Jamison's death in 1995 and his galleries' subsequent closures, Bartow signed on with Charles Froelick of Froelick Gallery in Portland, and a fruitful 20-year professional relationship and friendship followed. Froelick continues to represent Bartow's estate. Bartow's carving The Cedar Mill Pole was displayed in the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden at the White House in 1997; it had been designated one of the most highly regarded Native American public sculptures in the country. The pole was partially inspired by Bartow's work with the Māori artist John Bevan Ford. Presented as a gift to the Portland, Oregon metropolitan community from Oregon's Washington County and the Oregon College of Art and Craft, it was intended to help heal the controversy that surrounded