Joyce Fritz Ritz

About the Artist

Joyce has been on an artful journey her whole life. She began creating original clothing for her dolls when her mother taught her to sew at the age of 10. From that moment she realized she always wanted to create new work and learn new techniques. She continues to have a hunger to learn new techniques and combine them with her vast experiences. She studied Fibers at the Maryland Institute, College of Art and has her BFA in Crafts. She freelanced for many years as a costume designer in Baltimore and Washington areas. Working with many different artists, she grew to love the collaborative art of theatre and particularly the art of puppetry. To further her knowledge she attended the premiere school of puppetry at the University of Connecticut where she received her Master’s Degree in Costume Design and Puppetry. And yes, they do actually granted degrees in Puppetry! Shortly after graduating, she started a production company with 2 partners, Integrity Designworks that specialized in creating puppets and masks for all types of performance. The company designed and created original work for Broadway’s Tony award winning production of “Invention of Love”, the Broadway Tour of “Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella” and probably the most challenging production, Wausau Dance Theatre’s “Alice in Wonderland’ in which the company designed the entire production and even build a 17’ tall caterpillar puppet. Joyce also teaches, and has lectured all over the country and was invited to China to teach a mask workshop to the students at the National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts in Beijing. After moving to the eastern shore of Maryland, Joyce decided to take a break from theatre and explore her personal art. She began working in various mediums creating small sculptures, sometimes finding opportunities to collaborate with other artists. She created a limited edition series of sculptures inspired by the visionary folk artist, Danny Doughty .The sculptures captured his paintings in 3 dimensions and were created as table top pieces. They were created from a variety of materials and were often painted by Danny where appropriate.My other passion is illustration. I love pattern, color and fun. I enjoy creating whimsical characters such as fish, seahorses, crocodiles and chickens. I use a combination of ink and watercolor that is vibrant and fantastical. Along the way she discovered her true passion for creating jewelry, expressing how energy moves within us and around us. Currently she is designing pieces by sculpting wire around gemstones, glass and beads. The work is whimsical, colorful and expresses movement. In a way, these are the themes she has been pursuing her whole life through all the various mediums she has discovered, so far. Joyce shows her work all over at art festivals, juried craft shows and in galleries and on her company’s website www.soulyjoyce.com and Facebook.com/pages/Souly-Joyce

Artist's Statement

I have worked in a wide variety of mediums throughout my career, my work is always colorful, sculptural and usually whimsical. The focus of my jewelry is to capture the essence of how I perceive the flow of energy. Some pieces capture how the energy moves within us. Other pieces express the larger energy of the universe. My goal is always to honor the beautiful stones by allowing movement around them.