Bess Rodriguez Richard

“At less than two years of age I began to draw…in color. I began painting in high school and then in earnest in college. I spent a summer in Brittany, France, after graduating from college and there my keen interest in plein air painting developed. Wherever I have lived, I have always found an art teacher from whom I have gleaned and extracted “Golden nuggets” of wisdom and I have culled these together to form a unique and eclectic form of expressionism which continues to evolve. I have studied art in Japan, California (U.C. Berkeley’s extension program); Princeton, New Jersey’s Arts Council; Corcoran School of Art in Washington D.C., The Yellow Barn in Glen echo Maryland; and the Cleveland Institute of Art.

Perhaps due to the bold colors I observed while living in Mexico City as a child, I love to create vibrant pictures. I have been told by some who have viewed my paintings that they would like to step into them and live there. This impulse to create something pleasing or intriguing that captures one’s eye coupled with an increasing fascination with color has grown in me. To tell a story, to create a mood, or to evoke…to communicate with kindred spirits…this fuels my creative process.”

B. R.R. 2015

Bess Richard grew up as the child of U.S. diplomats. As you can read from the quote above, she has been very influenced throughout her life by the landscape and people connected with her travels and is a storyteller at heart. The work in the archives ranges from 1979 to 2013. “Camaret, Brittany, France” was painted in 1979 as part of her B.F.A. she spent six weeks in France where she learned to paint plein air works in oil. It is a good example of the muted color palette of her earlier works.

“Boombox Baby” was a pivotal work signaling a dramatic change in both her painting style and use of color. She credits two events in her life which contributed to this change: the diagnosis of her child as autistic and a new teacher, The Director of the Princeton art council, who taught color theory in great detail.

Bess Rodriguez Richard holds a B.A. in Art History / International Relations from Johns Hopkins University and George Washington University, as well as a B.F.A. in painting from George Washington U., and an M.A. in art history from George Washington U.

Her paintings have been exhibited internationally in venues such as, the US Embassy in Tokyo, Japan; and the home of the US consul General in Paris, France and Mexico City. Her paintings have also been shown in juried shows across the Mid – Atlantic and Midwestern states where she has received numerous awards, as well as; University Hospitals Humphrey Atrium Gallery; The Beck Center for the Arts, Lakewood Ohio; Georgetown University’s Medical Center; The Cleveland Institute of Art’s Weinberger Gallery; The Ratner museum, Bethesda Maryland; and various Cleveland Galleries.

Her works are part of numerous public and private collections including University Hospital, Cleveland; Rainbow Babies Hospital, Cleveland; Cleveland Art Association; and many more.