Rita Collins
Eureka, MT
Exhibit Year: 2021-2022
About the Artist
Rita Collins holds a doctorate in education and took art courses at the New York Center for the Book. She has studied philosophy, special education and adult literacy. Her accomplishments include intertwining teaching, community action and art over fifty years… Her current practice includes woodblock printing, collage, artist books, writing, music, and quilting. The artist lives and works in Eureka, Montana.
Artist Statement
Woodblock prints on fabric show twenty individuals who passed away from the coronavirus on Covid Quilt #2. The twenty include individuals Rita Collins personally knew (a father of a good friend, a stepfather of a neighbor), some well-known people like Ellis Marsalis and John Prine, and others she discovered reading obituaries. The woodblocks for the quilt were made by Shirley Jacobs of Eureka, Montana and Rita printed them. Shirley and Rita made 39 books to go with the quilt with portraits. The book, titled No Lo Olvidemos (Spanish for “Lest We Forget”), features twenty-one portraits, information on how the project evolved, a photo of the quilt, short bios and notes.