Bill Mack
Bill Mack was born in Minneapolis and was creating and selling oil portraits in high school. At 17 years old, when a poor quality relief portrait for a memorial tablet created by another artist was submitted to his employer for approval, Mack thought he could do a better job. He gave it a try and it was instantly accepted. He immediately quit his job and began a career as a commissioned relief sculptor.
He made a spectacular debut in New York and, in a remarkably short time for a contemporary artist, has achieved worldwide acceptance. He has had exhibitions in galleries world wide. His works are in the collections of President Clinton and former Presidents Ford and Reagan - Actors and renowned art aficionados, International business leaders, and celebrities. His piece entitled "Lady" is part of the permanent collection of the Statue of Liberty National Monument on Liberty Island. His sculpture of basketball great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar hangs in the entry of the NBA Hall of Fame, and he has also created sculptures that are permanently installed in the International Tennis Hall of Fame (Arthur Ashe), the American and Canadian Hockey Halls of Fame (Hobey Baker), his sculpture of Lyle Alzado is in the collection of the NFL Hall of Fame, and a sculpture of Peggy Fleming is on permanent display at the United States Figure Skating Hall of Fame.
The mustachioed Mack has a distinctive flair about him. For example, there is a fresh red rose bud he wears on his lapel every day. Though he will not reveal the personal reason why he began the practice some years ago, the red rose has become a symbolic trademark. Presenting them at gallery openings, he has become the largest non-commercial buyer of roses in the world, requiring tens of thousands of them each year
