Draft:Jim Ritchie

James Edward Ritchie (1929–2017) was a Canadian artist creating pastel drawings and bronze sculptures.

Career
Ritchie was born in Montreal, Canada. In 1947, Ritchie attended L'Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Montreal for a few months before realizing he preferred to work autonomously. His first solo show took place at the Galerie Libre, Montreal in 1957.

Ritchie had several exhibitions in Montreal before moving to the small French town of Vence in Provence, where he lived and worked for over 30 years. In this time he produced some of his most important pieces in terracotta, bronze and began to work with marble.

Adelson Galleries in New York began representing him in 1980, where he had two solo exhibitions. Over the next 30 years, Warren Adelson arranged exhibitions of his work in Boston, Los Angeles, and at art fairs across the country. He had a 60-year career in sculpting. His son, Paul Leander-Engström, and Adelson Galleries now represent Ritchie's estate.

Style and technique
Ritchie took great care in each of his works. His meticulous processes and creative ingenuity frequently followed a precise path. Bronze sculptures were done in editions of eight, signed and numbered by the artist. Pieces were usually executed in two or three sizes: a maquette, a middle-sized model, and a life-sized work. Each bronze was cast under the artist's direct supervision at his foundry in Italy and was individually finished by Ritchie. The marble sculptures are unique carvings executed in Italy and finished by the artist.

Selected solo exhibitions
Adelson Cavalier Galleries, Palm Beach, 2019 Adelson Galleries, Inc., New York, 1996, 1992 Pucker Gallery, Boston, 1992 Feingarten Galleries, Los Angeles, 1989 Coe-Kerr Gallery, New York, 1988 Galerie Alphonse Chave, Vence, 1988, 1971 Galerie l'Art Français, Montreal, 1987 Galerie Bernard Desroches, Montreal, 1975 Waddington Gallery, Montreal, 1972 Moos Gallery, Montreal, 1970, 1968 Pollock Gallery, Toronto, 1968 Alwin Gallery, London, 1966 Galerie Martal, Montreal, 1966 Galerie Minotaure, Vence, 1965 Madden Gallery, London, 1964 Klinkhoff Gallery, Montreal, 1963,1960 Broadway Gallery, Worcestershire, 1962 Grafton Gallery, London, 1962 Galerie Libre, Montreal, 1957

Selected group exhibitions
Art Miami, 1966, 1995 Adelson Galleries, 1990 La Versailiana, Pietrasanta, 1988 Galerie L'Orangerie, Geneva, 1987 Fondation Emile Hughes, Vence, 1983 Fifth Annual Festival of Plastic Arts, Antibes, 1967 Galerie Municipale de Saint Paul de Vence, 1965 Royal Academy, London, 1962 Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Spring Exhibition, 1956

Public collections
Art Gallery of Hamilton, Ontario Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, Halifax Banca Commerciale Italiana, formerly The Henraux Collection Confederation Center, Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island Kitchener Waterloo Art Gallery, Ontario Lord Beaverbrook Art Gallery, Fredericton, New Brunswick McLaughlin Museum, Oshawa, Ontario McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario Musée d'Art Contemporain, Montreal Musée d'Art de St. Laurent, Québec Musée de la Ville de Lachine, Québec Musée de Charlevoix, Pointe-au-Pic, Québec Musée de Joliette, Québec Musée de Québec Musée de Seminaire, Québec Museo di Bozzetti, Pietrasanta University College, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia University of King College Library, Halifax, Nova Scotia Vence Town Square