Freeman L. Loughridge Jr. of Burneyville, OK passed away September 1, 2024 at his home with the love of his life Mary Catharine (Stapleton) Loughridge by his side.

He was born November 25, 1946, in Ardmore Oklahoma to the late Freeman L. Loughridge Sr. and Marie Inez (Ford) Loughridge Walters. Freeman was raised in Ardmore by his beloved grandmother Mary Lena "Mama Lady" Loughridge and graduated from Ardmore High School in 1965. While in high school Freeman was on the wrestling team and excelled in both his shop and art classes learning skills that would be integral to his lifelong passion as an artist. He was always very mechanically inclined and loved to work on and drive motorcycles and cars, the faster the better. He built and raced his front engine dragster prior to graduating high school.

Freeman moved to San Jose, California, after graduation and studied art at San Jose State University where he met Mary Catharine Stapleton. They were married July 8, 1967, and began their life together in San Jose, California. During college he worked at McDonald's while he was a full-time student in Fine Arts. After marriage he worked for Montgomery Ward small engine service department and appliance repair. He was also a cartoonist for the Montgomery Ward Company magazine.

During college Freeman apprenticed Frank Howell at Mud in Your Eye pottery studio, and some of his early works are shown in Howell's book The Craft of Pottery, published in 1975. Freeman and Cathy started Big Muddy River Pottery in 1973 and embarked on a career in hand thrown, high fired pottery. He built a cantenary arch gas kiln in their back yard and used the garage for his studio, he never looked back! He spent the next several years selling his creations at art shows, festivals and in galleries in the greater bay area. During this time his work evolved from beautiful and functional to whimsical and thought evoking.

In 1979 Freeman moved his family back to the Ardmore area to be closer to family and expand his market in the art world. This move ushered in a whole new period of art that would become synonymous with the artist himself. Freeman had a unique perspective on life and could find humor in almost any situation. His works were witty combined with a bit of irony and were self-described as "ridiculously sublime".  The many faces and comical animal pieces made people laugh and not take life so seriously. They are enjoyed worldwide by his thousands of patrons.

In the late 1980's both Freeman and Cathy became involved in support of The Goddard Center in Ardmore, OK. While Cathy concentrated on teaching art classes for children and painting elaborate backdrops for many of the theatrical productions for Ardmore Little Theatre, Freeman taught pottery classes for adults at his studio in Dickson and participated in the juried art shows offered by The Goddard Center. This involvement blossomed into several mentorships for burgeoning potters that developed into lifelong friendships with other talented artists. Several of Freeman's sculptural works are installed in the center's permanent art collection.

In the early 2000's Freeman expanded his preferred media to include metal and wood in his works. This era of mixed media sculptures and "found" metal works of art sparked a new generation of ridiculously brilliant pieces. He would go to a junk yard or a farm auction and "see" pieces of sculptures in the heaps of scrap metal. He brilliantly crafted these plow discs, rocker arms, leaf springs and forgotten tools into amazing metal sculptures, some as tall as twelve feet in height. These also reflected his quirky sense of humor and were featured on an OETA artist profile in 2005.

During his later years Freeman returned to using primarily clay for his works of art. His final pivot as an artist produced a series of hand thrown and sculpted jugs in a numbered series. The inspirations for the series came from the design style of steam punk and utilized satire and absurdity to poke fun at the world around us. His final piece was given life in 2022.

Throughout his career he could always count on his wife Cathy for support and encouragement. Even with his complex and multi-faceted personality, he would often comment that "she just gets me".

Preceded in death by his parents and his sister Marilyn Anne Brannon, Freeman is survived by his wife Cathy of Falconhead, OK, his daughters Carrie Wallis and husband Clint of Norman, OK; Caitlin Gray and husband Doug of Edmond, OK; and son Frank Loughridge and wife Shanyn of Orange, CA.; his brother Forest (Bud) Loughridge and wife Cecilia of Moore, OK and sister Frelyn Loughridge of Ardmore, OK: grandchildren Greyson, Reagan and Austin Adams, Zane Wallis and Freeman John Loughridge; and many nieces, nephews and great nieces and nephews.

A private collection of Freeman's works will be displayed in a memorial exhibition October 3-5, 2024 at The Goddard Center in Ardmore, OK. His wake will be on October 5th 2:00 p.m. at The Goddard Center amid the exhibition.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in his name to:

The Goddard Center

401 1st Avenue SW

Ardmore, OK 73401