Peter Gooch

Graduating from Western Michigan University with honors in 1985, with an M.F.A. in painting, Peter joined the faculty in the Department of Visual Arts at the University of Dayton where he continues his tenure today. His paintings are regularly exhibited through his representation at the Robert L. Kidd Gallery in Birmingham, Mich. and B Deemer Gallery in Louisville, Ky. His work is included in numerous regional corporate and private collections. His painting was last seen on campus in 1995 as part of an Art Alumni Exhibition installed in Space Gallery. 

"As I've expressed many times, my fondness for Western Michigan University remains wholly undiminished by time or geographical distance. My experience at Western in the early mid-eighties remains one of the fondest and most affecting in my memory. Over the ensuing years I have tried, as best I could to live up to the principles and practices of art making and professorship to which I was introduced in the course of my MFA studies in Kalamazoo. These experiences have formed the core of my understanding both of teaching, and of making art, and I remain profoundly grateful for the opportunities afforded by a Western Michigan University education. I cannot recall the architectural particularities of Sangren Hall, or even East Hall, despite the countless hours I spent in each. But I can recall quite vividly many of the numerous lively, insightful and stimulating discussions with my faculty mentors during the course of my studies. Looking back over 20 years of my own university teaching, that gift seems no small thing."