Rita Robillard: Time and Place

Rita Robillard (American, born 1944) is a highly regarded Portland, Oregon, mixed media artist who explores themes of history, nature, ecology, and place in her work. A prolific printmaker and painter who is constantly pushing the boundaries of the printmaking medium, Robillard was born, raised, and educated in New York City, studied at Cooper Union in the early 1960s, lived and worked in Brazil in the early 1970s, earned her BA degree and MFA degree at the University of California, Berkeley in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and taught at Washington State University in Pullman and Portland State University. Wherever she has lived, Robillard’s work has served as an exploration and meditation on time and place.

In this lavishly illustrated book, four contemporary art writers come together to explore the life and times of Rita Robillard. Art writer Bean Gilsdorf provides a broad overview of Robillard’s life and career, while Frances DeVuono, a friend of Robillard’s for many years, offers an in-depth interview with the artist. Patricia Grieve Watkinson, former director of the Museum of Art at Washington State University in Pullman, discusses Robillard’s Pullman years, while Linda Tesner, former director of the Hoffman Gallery at Lewis and Clark College in Portland, writes about her Portland years. In addition to the essays, the book features an extensive biography of the artist and more than 60 color illustrations.