Watching & Waiting

A Portrait of Rita Reasons

Charcoal & Mixed Media on Toned Paper, 14 x 22 in., 2020 / SOLD

This portrait of Rita Reasons was created in 2020, at a time when so many of us were holding our breath, watching, and waiting...

There are people in this world who give more than they take. Rita, working tirelessly with little more than a handful of teenage volunteers, rescues and rehabilitates, saving the lives of countless horses. Each of these neglected and malnourished souls has a story - Rita takes time to know it and calls them all by name. I spent an afternoon with Rita on the ranch, photographing her for reference images as she went about her chores. From some distance away, I caught her leaning on a fence, gazing off into the distance, watching her new arrivals on the ranch. As she stood there, with wisdom and patience I do not have the life experience to understand, I knew this was a moment worth preserving.

Rita Reasons is high art.

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ARC Finalist

SOLD through 33 Contemporary, Chicago, Illinois