Location: 
Clayton Staples Gallery
McKnight Art Center West (2nd floor)
School of Art, Design and Creative Industries

Meet-the-Artist Reception | Thursday, April 2 | 3:30–4:30 p.m.

Mix and mingle with fellow art lovers and meet Ecologies of the Self exhibition artist Emily E. Ritter. 

Ecologies of the Self is on view through May 15, 2026. Clayton Staples Gallery hours are Monday–Friday, 8 a.m.–5 p.m.

About the artist
Emily E. Ritter is an interdisciplinary artist currently living in Kansas. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art with an emphasis in Printmaking from Wichita State University in 2012. After graduating, Ritter was an Intern-in-Residence at Women’s Studio Workshop in Rosendale, NY in 2014. She received her Master of Fine Arts in Studio Art from Arizona State University in 2018. Ritter’s work explores various ecological themes, most recently creating symbolic artworks that feature native Kansas flora and fauna. She has exhibited her work locally, nationally, and internationally.

About the artist's work
This exhibition brings together several threads from my artistic practice, including wildlife illustration, ecological exploration, and emotion-based drawings. My work examines how humans connect to the natural world, from observing urban wildlife to imagining future ecosystems shaped by human impact. More recent pieces merge symbolic animal imagery with emotional mark-making, exploring resilience, transformation, and the interconnectedness of life.