Rosalyn Richards / artist’s statement

Much of what we are able to see in the natural world is mediated by technology. The relationship between what is seen and technological means of imaging nature is central to my work. Some images seem to depict expanding cellular forms, and some suggest an inner world of mysterious forces and events, the beginning or end of a transformative process. The perceived scale of the images could range from the cosmic to the microscopic world of cell mutation. There are various associations and interpretations connected to the work, and the images can be seen as metaphors for the human impulse to search for meaning.

The images are a visual narrative dealing with microscopic views of growth processes in nature – an investigation of unit forms and the intricacies of their arrangements. The imagery has been abstracted in order to emphasize the suggestive properties of marks, drawn lines, and the undrawn dynamics of the empty spaces on the paper. I employ repetition, shifting scales and a variety of tonal relationships to reference the natural world and explore processes normally unseen by the human eye. The passage of time, and the mysterious spaces that imply hidden forces, are the underlying themes of the work.

In some of the work I use appropriated imagery from scientific diagrams of cosmic or microscopic events and images from biology. In more recent work I have been seeking to free the line from the representation of forms, and use it to create atmosphere and space. There is a specific energy to each mark and line that can create a sense of fluidity and open-endedness, leading the viewer to multiple interpretations of the imagery.

Artist’s biography

Rosalyn Richards received her BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design and MFA from Yale University School of Art. Her work is represented in many museum and university gallery collections including the Art Institute of Chicago, the Hood Museum of Dartmouth College, Yale University Art Gallery, Minneapolis Institute of Art, the Ackland Art Museum of the University of North Carolina, the Samek Art Museum of Bucknell University, Guangdong Museum of Contemporary Art in China, Purdue University Galleries, and Vanderbilt University Fine Arts Gallery, among others. She has held artist residencies at numerous locations in the United States including Virginia Center for Creative Arts and Ragdale in Illinois. She was a visiting artist and critic at Colby College, Cornell University, the University of Dallas, Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts in China, and the University of Nebraska in Lincoln.
Rosalyn Richards’ work has been included in numerous national and international exhibitions, including solo exhibitions at Anchor Graphics in Chicago, Artemisia Gallery in Chicago, The Print Center in Philadelphia, Anita Shapolsky Gallery in New York, and Village Gallery in Hauz Khas Village in New Delhi, India. In 2009, her drawings were exhibited at The Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts Museum in Tianjin, China where she was also a guest lecturer. Recently her prints were included in “Multiple Encounters Second Edition”, at The National Academy of Fine Art in New Delhi, India. From 1982 – 2014, Richards taught drawing and printmaking at Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.

Link to Canvas Rebel interview January 2024