Rita Kogler Carver
I have always created art on some level. It is simply who I am and how I express myself. My art has taken different forms, at different times in my life, as luckily art is limitless in its possibilities.
My inspiration comes from events I experienced -- from my father's death to a cattail gently swaying in the breeze, no singular event is more or less of an inspiration. Every recollection is very special and specific. I call on different memories and moments when starting a new piece or series. Tapping into the emotions I felt on the day I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, the day the World Trade Center fell, or the day I married the man I love, I feel helps me create unique works of art. Therefore, you will find my art to be very personal. Every experience I've ever had eventually makes its way into one of my paintings. When each piece is completed it is as if something unsaid has finally been revealed ... a secret has been exposed, a burden lifted.
I don't try to send a message. My artwork is not political or religious in that way. I do however try to convey feelings. Having lived half of a century, I have had some wonderful opportunities. I simply wish to share the blessings I've been given. I paint with passion. I hope to trigger emotions in order to receive passionate responses. Simply put, I wish to to touch as many people as possible with my paintings.
There are many artists who have influenced my life, and therefore my art. Principal among them are Sargeant, Sorolla, Van Gogh, Turner, and Klimt. When I look at this list of names the one word that comes to mind is evocative. This has become the essence of my work.
Rita is a graduate of New York University's Tisch School of the Arts with an M.F.A. in Design. She is an Associate Member of the American Watercolor Society and the National Watercolor Society, hoping to one day be a Signature Member of both. Rita has been drawing and painting since an early age, never receiving formal training until college and graduate school. She studied with Gustav Rehberger at the Art Student's League and John Gleason at NYU. Recent workshops include Joan Jardine, Evelyn Dunphy and Pat Dews. Rita creates her works on any substrate available and with all mediums. She especially enjoys combining wet and dry mediums for more textural effects. Her subjects come primarily from nature and range from realistic to expressionistic to abstract depending on her inspiration of the moment.
Passion is everything. Without it we are lost!
My inspiration comes from events I experienced -- from my father's death to a cattail gently swaying in the breeze, no singular event is more or less of an inspiration. Every recollection is very special and specific. I call on different memories and moments when starting a new piece or series. Tapping into the emotions I felt on the day I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, the day the World Trade Center fell, or the day I married the man I love, I feel helps me create unique works of art. Therefore, you will find my art to be very personal. Every experience I've ever had eventually makes its way into one of my paintings. When each piece is completed it is as if something unsaid has finally been revealed ... a secret has been exposed, a burden lifted.
I don't try to send a message. My artwork is not political or religious in that way. I do however try to convey feelings. Having lived half of a century, I have had some wonderful opportunities. I simply wish to share the blessings I've been given. I paint with passion. I hope to trigger emotions in order to receive passionate responses. Simply put, I wish to to touch as many people as possible with my paintings.
There are many artists who have influenced my life, and therefore my art. Principal among them are Sargeant, Sorolla, Van Gogh, Turner, and Klimt. When I look at this list of names the one word that comes to mind is evocative. This has become the essence of my work.
Rita is a graduate of New York University's Tisch School of the Arts with an M.F.A. in Design. She is an Associate Member of the American Watercolor Society and the National Watercolor Society, hoping to one day be a Signature Member of both. Rita has been drawing and painting since an early age, never receiving formal training until college and graduate school. She studied with Gustav Rehberger at the Art Student's League and John Gleason at NYU. Recent workshops include Joan Jardine, Evelyn Dunphy and Pat Dews. Rita creates her works on any substrate available and with all mediums. She especially enjoys combining wet and dry mediums for more textural effects. Her subjects come primarily from nature and range from realistic to expressionistic to abstract depending on her inspiration of the moment.
Passion is everything. Without it we are lost!