Kris Ellis Ritter – An Artist at Play

Sept. 10, 2015

Kris Ellis Ritter’s artwork is difficult to pigeonhole. She paints, creates glassworks, takes photographs, and makes jewelry and wind chimes, all in “an Amish barn on steroids” in rural Wexford County west of Manton.

“My studio is my sanctuary,” said the Flint-born Ritter. “I get up in the morning and go out there and work in the quiet. It renews me. I try to work every day.”

Growing up she was anything but the “art kid” in school. “I had my first discouragement in kindergarten when my teacher leaned over the corner of a table yelling ‘No, no, no, Kristine. Don’t do it like that. Do it like her!’” she recalled. “I put my crushed sense of self away and did the picture like the other girl. Surprisingly, I loved art in seventh grade until the teacher asked if I was planning to take art in high school. I shrugged and he said, ‘Don’t. You have no talent!’ That finished off my dreams of art until my friend dragged me to The Thistle Patch,” she said.

Despite the lack of early encouragement, Ritter has created an impressive array of work. Many of her paintings are bold.

“I like color,” she explained. “Whether it’s in water colors or pen and ink, I like color.” Though she loves painting and photography, recently Ritter has focused on fused glass creations. Her wide-ranging works serve as a therapeutic outlet.

“Most of my life I’ve suffered from depression, and my art has helped me deal with that,” she said.

HOW I GOT STARTED

I got started with art when a friend dragged me to an art class at The Thistle Patch, not for the art, but for the “ah” of relaxation that comes with the process. She thought I was pretty uptight and could use something that would ease my constant state of tension. It worked! That was back in the ’80s. I didn’t paint for several years until early 2000. I took a few private lessons and then back to The Thistle Patch, where I stayed.

THE STORY BEHIND MY ART, MY INSPIRATION

I figured I was the one kid out of our family of nine who didn’t get any art talent from my dad who was a commercial artist. My biggest inspiration came from Carol Holly and the other folks at The Thistle Patch. She encouraged me to find my own art, telling me to “do it” when I said I wanted to do something wild. Allowing me to let go and just put paint on canvas freed me to explore color, feel the textures and let the paint evolve into a finished piece, sometimes in minutes. I joined the first Cadillac Art Walk nine years ago because they needed more artists and I wanted to help out. I sold my “wild” painting and several photographs to my surprise.

The next year, I sold again, and it inspired me to try even more painting. Gregg Carner at Brinks Framing encouraged me to have a one - man showing of my pen and ink trees. Without the encouragement, coercion even, I would have given up on myself.

WORK I’M MOST PROUD OF

The work I am most proud of is the abstract pen and inks; pen and ink trees; and my wild paintings. I love to play, quite often thinking I am like a kindergartner rushing home to show Mom what I made today.

I am excited about what comes out of my mind and onto paper, and I am now playing with fused glass.

YOU WON’T BELIEVE

Other than finding it hard to believe that I managed to become a believable artist? DNA testing shows I’m related to Ben Franklin, the singer Bono and President Rutherford B. Hayes. Also, we love to travel. My husband Chris and I once bought a motor home in Oregon, sight unseen. Then we spent 44 days touring the country and driving it back to Michigan.

MY FAVORITE ARTIST

My favorite artists are Van Gogh and Mike McDonnell of Benzie County. He was a friend of my dad’s and brought a crazy laidback sense of humor into our lives. Listening to him talk about art was like sitting at the feet of the master. His art inspires me.

ADVICE FOR ASPIRING YOUNG ARTISTS

My advice for young artists is to explore, play and remember it’s just a piece of paper. Don’t be too hard on yourself. Just let yourself get excited about whatever comes out. In time, you will learn the process. Enjoy the journey.

MY WORK CAN BE SEEN/PURCHASED

At the Sweet Shop in Cadillac and at the Cadillac Festival of the Arts, July 17–18.