Artist Elise Ritter
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Artist Elise Ritter |
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| Biography
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"Whether she is painting a pair of rocking chairs on a beachfront porch,
or photographing an old fishnet draped over a railing, Elise Ritter
gets you to look at things in a whole different way without
exaggerating the beauty of her subjects."
- Connie Bond,former Arts Editor of Smithsonian Magazine
Elise Ritter is an artist who lives on the Rappahannock River in Urbanna, Virginia. She also spends part of her time in Arlington, VA. right outside Washington, D.C. Elise creates watercolor paintings of seascapes, still life, landscapes and other subject matter; assembles abstract collages; and takes photographs. Elise lived on the southern Chesapeake Bay at Fort Monroe, Virginia, for three years when she was young. As a grade school art student, she was smitten by the beach scenes and wild seascapes there, where the Bay met the Atlantic Ocean. She knew even then that at some point in her life she had to live on the water again, and resume painting. And now she has. A few words about her professional career: After obtaining a journalism degree from the University of Kansas, Elise began a 20-year career in publishing in the Washington, D.C. area. At the New Republic magazine, she was the production editor, and helped direct that publication's new design. At Time-Life Books, she held numerous research, editing and management positions. Her favorite assignments included the "Life Library of Photography" revisions, and the "Mysteries of the Unknown" series. She hired and helped direct editorial staff members and art designers for numerous projects. In the mid-1990s, she changed course and received a Master's degree in clinical social work from Virginia Commonwealth University. Elise was a therapist at the Women's Center in Vienna, VA., and later in private practice. She studied art therapy at George Washington University and incorporated those techniques in her counseling work. Most recently, she was a freelance writer for DiscoveryHealth.com and PsychologyOnline.com. Throughout these years, Elise created art whenever time allowed. After participating in life's greatest adventure--raising a family-- she moved with her husband to Urbanna, in Virginia's Chesapeake Bay region, and is able to return to art full-time.
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