- This event has passed.
Rita Curtis | Monument Sotheby’s International Realty I Art Gallery Event
October 16, 2025 @ 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Please join us on Thursday, October 16th, from 4-6 pm
at our Ruxton Office & Gallery to enjoy the paintings of Rita Curtis.
Biography — Rita Curtis’s paintings evoke mystery and wonder through color harmonies, blurred forms, and fluid transitions between figure and background. Her work moves beyond photographic realism to capture feeling and memory, blending disciplined design with intuitive creativity.
Drawing inspiration from Renaissance chiaroscuro, Impressionist color, and
contemporary realism, Curtis’s paintings invite viewers into emotionally rich, unresolved narratives. Critics praise the intensity and depth of her work echoing her lifelong passion for music. Curtis previously performed with the New York Choral Society and the Bach Society of Baltimore.
Curtis’s achievements include top-tier awards from Oil Painters of America and New York’s Salmagundi Club, plus prestigious honors from multiple plein air competitions. Her work has been highlighted in International Artist magazine, American Art Collector magazine, and the book, Plein Air Painters of the Mid-Atlantic. An engaged member of artist communities, she is a signature member of the Mid-Atlantic Plein Air Painters Association, and she served in leadership roles in the Charcoal Club of Maryland. Curtis has frequently been invited to judge local and national art competitions.
During several decades at Johns Hopkins University, Curtis contributed to global health through writing and illustrating health manuals and conducting workshops in Africa and Asia. Her core passion, however, remained painting. When Curtis returned full-time to fine art, she developed a distinctive style, transforming sepia-toned family photographs into expressive portraits.
Curtis’s formal education includes a bachelor’s degree in literature from New York University and a certificate in Italian language and literature from l’Università Stranieri, Perugia, Italy. At NYU, Curtis’s study of early American landscape artists reignited her yearning to paint. She went on to refine her skills at the Art Students League of New York, mastering anatomy, figure drawing, and color theory under notables such as Robert Beverly Hale and Frank Mason.
Artist Statement — My paintings explore the spirit of our world through an abstract realist lens. I’m attracted to simple moments — people going about their daily lives or colorful garden flowers at the height of their bloom. I begin each painting with large brushes and big washes of color. At times, I start with a picture reference, but I soon set it aside and my imagination takes charge of evolving the composition.
Light is at the heart of my work. I think carefully about how light passages move through the picture plane. When a painting begins to lose its coherence or bright color areas begin competing with each other, I step back and squint deeply so the colors start to look dim. At that point, the light and dark patterns start to look more distinct, and I can more easily adjust the composition, creating a clearer path of light to guide the viewer through the painting.
In the end, my paintings invite people to experience the world through light, color, and
movement, celebrating the temporary beauty found between abstraction and familiar forms.
ritacurtisfineart@gmail.com
website: www.ritacurtis.com
443-425-6819