Owner of Gallery 121 in Murray, Wayne Bates creates utility pieces of English porcelain pottery.

Wayne earned degrees in Art and Ceramics from Union University in Jackson, Tennessee and his graduate degree from University of Georgia.

In the past, Wayne was kiln supervisor at the Haystack Mountain School for Crafts, taught at the Philadelphia College of Art, and was ceramic consultant to the historic Moravian Tile Works in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. There he supervised the reactivation of tile production, including the glaze and slip recipes and the tile making processes.

$400

is  a self-taught artist who has been painting and drawing people throughout his entire life.  While teaching Electrical Engineering and later Telecommunications at Murray State University, he continued his artistic work in his home.  His early art pieces are primarily in pastel, charcoal, and pencil.  After retirement, he and his wife Cindy fulfilled their life-long dream and lived aboard a sailboat, cruising the East coast and Caribbean.  During this ten year period, John worked primarily in watercolor because of its simplicity and portability.  Watercolor continues to be his favorite medium.

John has won several awards since he began showing his work in the fall of 2015. In the Women's Club Art Show in Paducah, John won Featured Artist 2017, and Local Artist Showcase at Discovery Park of America in Union City TN, 2017.