Ric interweaves elements from history, memory and imagination to create emotionally resonant narrative work. Growing up in York County Pennsylvania, an area that was part of the Underground Railroad and not far from the battle ground of Gettysburg, Ric felt a connection to American history from an early age. In the fifth grade he went on a field trip to the Baltimore Museum of Art to see the traveling exhibit “The Family of Man”, a photography exhibit which featured images of people from around the word, and was intended to emphasize the commonality of the human condition, at a time in history,  the cold war era, when people felt increasingly fearful of foreigners. The exhibit made a lasting impression on Ric and throughout his “travels” through life, that early attraction to history has cumulated into a larger appreciation for the story of humanity.
     For Ric, collage is a natural choice to incorporate the multiple layers of meaning that make up his work. Seemingly incongruous pieces of fabric, hand-painted patterns and fanciful characters are blended together to suggest an underlying theme. The process of creating daily work has played an important role in Ric’s own artistic as well as personal journey.