Rita Deanin Abbey Art Museum Unveils Two Captivating Additions to its Collection
The Rita Deanin Abbey Art Museum has enhanced its collection by introducing two large-scale historical paintings by the American artist Rita Deanin Abbey (1930-2021), which are now part of the installation.
These works offer a compelling glimpse into different periods and techniques within Abbey’s career, providing both returning art enthusiasts and newcomers fresh perspectives on her artistic journey. The new pieces mark the second change to the museum’s displayed works of art since it officially opened to the public in 2022.
“The latest additions at the Rita Deanin Abbey Art Museum showcase remarkable works that truly highlight Rita’s unique vision and creativity,” said Laura Sanders, Executive Director of the Rita Deanin Abbey Art Museum. “Each piece tells a story, offering insights into Rita’s inspirations and techniques. We encourage guests to visit the museum and experience the captivating stories that ‘Ophelia’ and ‘The Raven Flies’ have to tell.”
“Ophelia”
“Ophelia,” a figurative oil painting from 1962, captures the sensuous beauty of the female form. The work’s fluid, curving lines evoke a natural sense of motion, reminiscent of natural geological phenomena, aligning with Abbey’s intention to convey rhythmic, recurring cycles observed in nature. This piece reflects her evolving understanding of color and spatial relationships, honed during her studies with Hans Hofmann. His mentorship instilled in Abbey a deep trust in her creative intuition and an exploration of the emotional impact of color on the canvas, as well as the architectonic aspects of the picture plane – themes that would remain central to her artistic expression. Abbey’s time in the American Southwest, particularly her deep connection to the desert landscape, also subtly informs the work, hinting at her exploration of merging the human form and the natural world as one.
“The Raven Flies”
Adding a distinct dimension to the museum’s collection is “The Raven Flies,” a mixed media piece created in 1975. This artwork is part of Abbey’s Texture Series, where she experimented with building up canvases using acrylic paint, sand, and sawdust combined with polymer gloss medium to achieve rich, earthy textures. The highly textured surface of “The Raven Flies” evokes geological processes and forms, with Abbey’s careful use of color expressing the earth’s natural tension, movement, and ever-changing contours. The interplay between reflective and absorbent materials creates a dynamic visual experience, challenging the viewer’s perception of light, space, and form. Abbey herself noted that embracing such “contraposition” fuels innovation and the exploration of new possibilities within her art.
Visit www.ritadeaninabbeymuseum.org for more information about the Rita Deanin Abbey Art Museum, to plan a visit, and to purchase tickets (visits are by appointment only).
About the Rita Deanin Abbey Art Museum
Visitors will enter the extraordinary world of a gifted artist. Rita Deanin Abbey’s imagination, talent, and beauty of spirit, influenced by her love of the desert southwest, are offered in a 10,500 square-foot museum that showcases the astonishing variety of her work, from abstract expressionist paintings to stained-glass windows, sculptures, landscapes, figure studies, murals, enamels, and more. In 2024, Abbey was inducted posthumously into the University of Nevada, Las Vegas College of Fine Arts Hall of Fame for her remarkable career. The museum was awarded Silver in the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s 2024 Best of Las Vegas Awards for “Best Art Gallery.” In 2023, the museum was named “Best Suburban Art Space” in Desert Companion magazine’s “Best of the City” issue.
The museum, located at 5850 N. Park Street in northwest Las Vegas, is open Thursday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tickets are available by appointment only and may be purchased online. For more information, follow the museum on Instagram or Facebook or visit www.ritadeaninabbeymuseum.org.