Artwork copyright Bill Ritchie. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Artwork copyright Bill Ritchie. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Loci with Sea Squares, 1981

Bill Ritchie
(American, born 1941)

Location: Challenger Elementary, Issaquah

ABOUT THE ARTWORK

Loci with Sea Squares is a mixed-media print created by artist Bill Ritchie. The imagery features multiple layers and visual symbols. Ritchie notes, "The imagery derives from three sources: the map is based on the Colorado River, a vicinity known once as the "Crossing of the Fathers"; the leaf-like shape is called a 'locus' or the path of a moving point (and was drawn to establish data for use in a computer program). The 'Great Wave" was drawn from the famous print by Hokusai."

This artwork was acquired for the State Art Collection in partnership with Issaquah School District.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Seattle-based artist and teacher Bill Ritchie is mainly known as a printmaker. He was an early experimenter in combining printmaking, video, and computer art, resulting in an innovative body of work that is nationally recognized.
Ritchie grew up in Prosser, Central Washington. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Central Washington University in Ellensburg and a Master of Fine Arts degree in printmaking from San Jose University in California. Ritchie taught printmaking and video art at the University of Washington in Seattle from 1966 to 1985. He has also taught at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, and the University of Oregon.