Rita Orsini
Rita Orsini is an artist, object designer and French lecturer, with a passion for contemporary design, applied arts and languages. She is well-known for her Osso Buco resin work, OMA silver-lace jewellery using silver wire recycled from double bass gut strings, and her multiple award-winning hand-painted artist lamps - the Orsini Light - which are in private collections in Australia and Europe.
Passionate about design and applied arts, Rita enjoys exploring new materials and techniques. In 2009, she began pushing the boundaries of traditional painting to develop an original and innovative concept - the ‘Orsini Lights’ series. When lit, the paintings provide another perspective of the same scene, delving into the theme of transformation which is at the core of her artwork. The Orsini Lights received several awards, including the recent Highly Commended Award at the 'Festival of Natives' exhibition in Lithgow in November 2022 and the People’s Choice Award at the GreenWay Art Prize in 2021.
In her Osso Buco resin work, Rita also explores the changes light can bring to colours. She says that “Mixing pigments to resin is like adding layers of colours to a painting, creating wonderful effects which vary when catching the sunlight”. Her jewellery, plates and bowls are light, vibrant and colourful.
Her OMA jewellery is made of crocheted silver wire or recycled double bass gut string silver wire. Rita first learnt to crochet as a young child with her grandmother, sitting in front of her house, overlooking a beautiful chain of mountains. Now, she likes incorporating and extending these traditional lace-making techniques and textile structures into her artwork.
Current work
Her latest e-jewellery creation - the DΩMEs - are embedded with electronics and were featured at the Museum of Contemporary Art’s fashion parade during VividSydney.
Light, transparency and fluidity are major themes in Rita's work, either through the choice of media, or in techniques and concepts. Rita explores the theme of light and transformation, as a reflection on identity, environmental and social narratives.
Upcoming shows and workshops
Rita’s works are sold through selected retail gallery stores in NSW, at exhibitions or at her studio in Dulwich Hill. She opens her private art studio regularly. Please check her website for details and next dates
https://www.ateliersorsini.com.au/exhibitions
Rita has a Experimental Painting Workshop on 22 April which you can book into via her website.
The next Open Studio will be held on Sunday 16 April 2023, 10am-5pm or by appointment through Rita's website.
Instagram @rita_orsini
Website ateliersorsini