The Critical Eye /  by John Ritchie

Street Party

In 2010 I and a group of fellow PhotoArts Guild members formed an independent critique group to critique each other’s work and help improve it. We have been meeting monthly ever since and have developed a common critical language based on composition, intent, technique and artistic impact in order to strengthen each member's photography without inhibiting his or her individual creative identity. We all owe a lot of our maturation as artists to the help of this group.

The group, consisting of Rich Bergeman, Phil Coleman, Marjorie Kinch, Bill Laing, Jack Larson, John Morris, Jim Magruder, Dave McIntire (deceased), and myself will be exhibiting in the Corrine Woodman Gallery in the Corvallis Arts Center. The exhibit highlights how artists can benefit from the useful critique of their peers, even when the artistic styles are completely dissimilar.

The Critical Eye

Corrine Woodman Gallery, Corvallis Arts Center

July 2 – 27, 2019

Conversations from the CWG Thursday, July 11th, 12 noon

ArtVote 2018 /  by John Ritchie

It’s election time, and I’m participating in ArtVote 2018, an initiative started by my friend and mentor David Paul Bayles. Local artists each donate six small prints, and people who have voted can come and select a commemorative print. The idea is to promote voting and celebrate art at the same time.

The print I’ve donated is “Crossing At Night.”

Update: As a successful voter, I also got to select a print. I got a nice work from Rani Primmer entitled “She Is Strong.”

Crossing At Night

"Nara Teahouse" Receives Juror's Choice Award /  by John Ritchie

Nara Teahouse

Nara Teahouse

Two of my photographs were accepted into the annual PhotoZone Gallery Juried Photographic Exhibition.  "Nara Teahouse," above, received a Juror's Choice award.  The other image, The Salaryman, can be seen here.  Both photographs were from a recent trip I took to Japan. 

The exhibition is on display at the Emerald Art Center in Springfield, Oregon through July 27th.

Look for more images from Japan coming soon. The photographs are starting to surface as I make my way through all the material I gathered there.

Two Members Exhibits: PhotoArts Guild and LightBox /  by John Ritchie

Members Exhibits can be a good way to showcase things you want without having them accepted by a juror.  I'm in two member exhibits in November and December: the Willamette Valley PhotoArts Guild's biennial exhibit, and the LightBox Photographic's annual Member Show.  Both exhibits feature excellent photography by amazing photographers.

Birthday Boy

For the Love of Oregon: Willamette Valley PhotoArts Guild Members Exhibit

The PhotoArts Guild does a biennial themed members' exhibit at the LaSells Stewart Center on the OSU campus in Corvallis.  The theme for this year's exhibit is "For the Love of Oregon."  For my entry, I selected three photographs depicting the diversity of Oregon's residents.

For the Love of Oregon will exhibit from November 3rd to December 8th.

The Crazy Box

LightBox Members Exhibit 2017

I've blogged before about how special LightBox Photographic in Astoria Oregon is.  Once again, I'm privileged to be part of its annual Members Exhibit.  For this show I submitted two of my long-time favorite photographs.

The exhibit will be from December 9th to January 9th with an opening reception on December 9th from 5 - 8pm.  LightBox Photographic is located at 1045 Marine Drive in Astoria Oregon.

Nocturnes & Noir in San Francisco /  by John Ritchie

Dispossessed

My photograph "Dispossessed" was accepted for the Nocturnes & Noir exhibit at the Harvey Milk Photo Center in San Francisco.  The exhibit, juried by Michael Kenna and Helen K. Garber, combines two schools of night photographic thought: the peace of the Nocturne with the darkness of Noir.  The exhibit celebrates the 25th anniversary of The Nocturnes Night Photography Group.

I've participated in Nocturnes exhibits before, but I was particularly pleased to have my photograph selected by Michael Kenna for this one.  His book "Mont St. Michel" was one of the first photography books I've purchased and his photographs have been an inspiration to me ever since.

The exhibit runs from February 11th through April 2nd, 2017 at the Harvey Milk Photo Center, 50 Scott Street, San Francisco.  There is an opening reception Saturday February 11th from 5:30 to 8:00 PM.

LightBox Members Exhibit 2016 /  by John Ritchie

Veteran, Patriot

LightBox Photographic is a very special gallery located in Astoria, Oregon.  They promote top-quality photographic art, specializing in traditional processing but supporting all fine photography.  LightBox has many fine exhibits every year, and I'm pleased to participate in the LightBox Members Exhibit 2016.  This is an opportunity for me to show a piece I'm excited to exhibit and to rub shoulders with many fine photographic artists of the North Coast and Portland community.

The exhibit will show from December 10th, 2016 to January 11th, 2017, with an Artists' Reception and Holiday Party on December 10th from 6-9pm.  LightBox Photographic is located at 1045 Marine Drive in Astoria, and its hours are Tue-Sat 11-5:30.

Low Tide Landscapes - Juried Exhibit in Coos Bay /  by John Ritchie

Bicycle Returning To the Sea

My "Bicycles Returning To the Sea," above, was selected by juror Julia Bradshaw, associate professor of art at Oregon State University, for an exhibit by the Willamette Valley PhotoArts Guild at the Coos Art Museum in Coos Bay, Oregon.  The exhibit explores the unusual and often alien terrain exposed along the Oregon Coast during low tides, particularly during extreme minus tides that occur in the spring and summer.  I chose this opportunity to focus on unusual activity rather than terrain because, although I love the coast at low tide, I believe that humans add a high degree of interesting alien-ness to any landscape, and that's what I like to photograph.

The exhibit runs from December 9th to February 11th, 2017, with an opening reception on Friday, December 9th from 5-7pm.

The Coos Art Museum is located at 235 Anderson Ave., Coos Bay, Oregon.  Its hours are Tues-Fri 10am to 4pm, Saturday 1-4pm.

Night Photography: Dusk to Dawn - PhotoPlace Gallery /  by John Ritchie

Three images from my Night's Quiet Light collection were juried into an exhibition in Vermont.

Fog Bow Tree

I'm very pleased that three of my images were selected by Juror Lance Keimig into the "Night Photography: Dusk to Dawn" exhibit.

The gallery exhibition will be from November 30th to December 29th, 2016 in the PhotoPlace Gallery at 3 Park Street in Middlebury, Vermont.

The exhibition consists of physical and online exhibit components. "Fog Bow Tree" (above) was selected for the physical gallery exhibition, while "Back Alley Staircase" and "Transpiration" were placed in the online exhibit.  Both exhibits are available online here, and contain many fine night photographs.