SAMA-Ligonier Exhibit to Feature Post Pop Artist

August 4th, 2009

The Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art at Ligonier Valley is preparing for the opening of its latest exhibition, Popular Culture: A Retrospective of Published Illustrations by John Ritter. The exhibition features more than 30 images by Ritter, whose American post pop compositions incorporate vibrant colors and photo collage while revealing a unique interpretation of contemporary politics, youth culture and media, and how each affects our interpretation of reality. The exhibition opens August 14 and will remain on view through November 7.

Ritter is well-known for creating visual narratives of cultural icons of the 20th and 21st centuries in a variety of serious and satirical situations. His keen eye and sharp mind have propelled his career as an illustrator, with his works consistently defining the pages of many of the country’s top publications. In 2008, Ritter’s art was featured on the cover of Time magazine on four occasions. His work has also appeared in The New Yorker, Harper’s, Newsweek, GQ, TV Guide, People, Money, Forbes, Entertainment Weekly, and the New York Times.

Ritter’s career began in Northern California in the mid-‘80s, and he has since seen his uncompromising interpretations of film, writers, musicians and politicians work its way into the collective American psyche. While working at Adobe Systems, Inc. in Silicon Valley, California, Ritter was on the design team that created Adobe Photoshop in the 1990s. Never relegating himself to a single format, the artist’s work has been utilized in Broadway advertising campaigns for the plays Rabbit Hole, 9 to 5, and Woman Before a Glass. He has shown at the Ansel Adams Center for Photography in San Francisco and the California College of Art, in addition to shows in Pittsburgh and Los Angeles. His work graces the collections of Academy Award-nominated composer Lalo Schifrin, former Major League Baseball star and financier Lenny Dykstra, and collectors and celebrities throughout the United States and Europe.

“Ritter’s work is a fascinating window into the many facets of our society,” said SAMA Ligonier Valley Coordinator and exhibition curator Sommer Toffle. “His combination of color, collaged form, politics and satire is exciting and exudes mystery and intelligence. An artist of this importance doesn’t come along everyday, and I am thrilled to be exhibiting the works of John Ritter at SAMA-Ligonier Valley.”

To celebrate the exhibition, the Museum will host an opening reception with the artist from 6 to 8 p.m. on Friday, August 14. The reception is open to the public free of charge. Reservations are required by August 11 and can be made by calling the Museum at (724) 238-6015. Ritter also will speak at a Lunch a l’Art program on September 17. Cost for the lunch and lecture program is $13 or $12 for SAMA members. Reservations are requested by September 14. Please call the Museum for reservations. For additional information, visit www.sama-art.org.

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