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Rita Deanin Abbey
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Rita Deanin Abbey </gallery> </gallery>
Born	July 20, 1930; Passic, New Jersey
Died	March 20, 2021
Known for	A multidisciplinary artist known for her painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, porcelain enamel fired on steel, stained glass, and computer art.
Movement	Abstract impressionism

RITA DEANIN ABBEY (July 20, 1930 – March 20, 2021) was a multidisciplinary artist known for her painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, porcelain enamel fired on steel, stained glass, and computer art.

Born in 1930, Abbey grew up in Passaic, New Jersey. She received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1952 and a Master of Arts degree in 1954 from the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM. She also studied at Goddard College, Plainfield, VT; the Art Students League, Woodstock, NY; the Hans Hofmann School of Fine Arts, Provincetown, MA; and the San Francisco Art Institute, San Francisco, CA. She was an artist in residence at the studios of many internationally renowned artists and institutions, has had over 60 individual exhibitions, and participated in over 160 national and international group exhibitions. She received many awards, grants, and commissions, including the Governor’s Seventh Annual Visual Arts Award for the State of Nevada in 1986, and the City of Las Vegas Office of Cultural Affairs, Las Vegas Arts Commission’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence in the Arts in 2012.

Abbey moved to Las Vegas in 1965 and was hired as a teacher in the art department of Nevada Southern University, now known as UNLV, and taught there until 1987. Abbey taught classes in drawing, painting, and color theory, and also developed interdisciplinary classes with the science department. Her works on display in Las Vegas include Spirit Tower, a 20-foot tall cor-ten steel sculpture at the Summerlin Library; the sixteen Isaiah Stained-Glass Windows in the main sanctuary of Temple Beth Sholom; the bust of Flora Dungan in the Humanities building at UNLV; and a plexiglass mural in one of the University Medical Center buildings on Charleston Boulevard. Abbey also made Wall of Creation, a twenty by forty foot mural made of polyester resin and fiberglass, for Temple Beth Sholom’s former synagogue on Oakey Boulevard. Artist Rita Deanin Abbey lived in Las Vegas, Nevada, and was an Emeritus Professor of Art at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV).

Biography

Rita who in 1952 became Edward Abbey's second wife after he divorced Jean Schmechal. Rita and Edward had two children, Joshua N. Abbey and Aaron Paul Abbey.^[1]

Education

High School: Passaic Senior High, Passaic, New Jersey, graduated 1948
Colleges & Universities: Goddard College, Plainfield Vermont, 1948–1950
University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 1950–54, (B.F.A. in painting and sculpture, 1952, with Honors in Fine Arts; M.A. in painting, 1954)
New York University, New York, New York, Summer 1951
Montclair State College, Montclair, New Jersey, Winter 1962

Art Studies

Naum Michael Los School of Art, French Institute, New York, New York, 1945–48
Art Students League, Woodstock, New York, Summer 1949, with Sigmund Menkes
Hans Hofmann School of Fine Arts, Provincetown, Massachusetts, Summers 1952, 1954
San Francisco Art Institute, San Francisco, California, 1958, with Frank Lobdell
Nevada Southern University, Las Vegas, Nevada, (presently University of Nevada, Las Vegas), Summer 1965
Studio of Toshi Yoshida, Tokyo, Japan, Spring 1977
West Mountain Enamel Workshop, Donnelly, Idaho, Summer 1984
Studio of John Killmaster, Boise, Idaho, Fall 1984
San Diego State University, San Diego, California, International Vitreous Enamel Workshop, Spring 1985
Enamelist Society, Cheryll Leo-Gwin Workshop, Ceramic Coating Company, Newport, Kentucky, Summer 1987

Teaching

Graduate Assistant, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 1952–53
Highland High School, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 1954–56
Studio classes, Hoboken, New Jersey, 1962–65
University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Nevada, Professor of Art, 1965–1987
University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Emeritus Professor of Art, July 1987
Ghost Ranch Conference Center, Abiquiu, New Mexico, May–June 1990

Abbey, had over 50 individual exhibitions and has participated in over 100 national and international group exhibitions. She is represented in private and public collections in the United States, the Middle East, and Europe.

Selected Exhibitions

1995: Enamel Today, at Villa am Aabach, Uster, Switzerland
1989-1991: Association of New York State traveling exhibition, Color and Image: Recent American Enamels.
1988: Rita Deanin Abbey 35 Year Retrospective / Marjorie Barrick Museum, University of Nevada, Las Vegas and Palm Springs Art Museum, Palm Springs, California

1982: Herter Gallery, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts
1978: Church Fine Arts Gallery, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, Nevada
1973: Harris Fine Arts Center, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah
1972: Silver Image Gallery, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
1972: University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona
1972: Nahamani’s Art Gallery, Mt. Carmel, Haifa, Israel
1960: La Galeria Escondida, Taos, New Mexico
1957: James Gallery, New York, New York
1955: Jonson Art Gallery, Albuquerque, New Mexico
1954:149th Annual Exhibition of Painting and Sculpture, Pennsylvania Academy Of The Fine Arts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1953: Harwood Foundation, Taos, New Mexico

Education / Teachers

Goddard College, Plainfield, VT

University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM

Naum Michael Los School of Art, French Institute, New York, NY

Art Students League of New York, with Sigmund Menkes

*Hans Hofmann School of Fine Art, with Hans Hofmann

*San Francisco Art Institute, San Francisco, California, with Frank Lobdell Artist in Residence in the studios of:

Artist in Residence in the studios of:

* Toshi Yoshida, Tokyo, Japan

* John Killmaster, Boise, ID

* Tamarind Institute, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM

* The Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ

* Savoy Studios, Portland, OR

* Methow Iron Works, Twisp, WA

* Shidoni Foundry, Tesuque, NM

* Bill Weaver Studio, Chupadero, NM

* Carlson & Co., San Fernando, CA

Grants, Awards & Commissions

Purchase Award, Photographs, Prints, and Drawings in New Mexico, Museum of New Mexico, Museum of Fine Arts, Santa Fe (Group Exhibition),1961
9th Annual National Round-Up Exhibition, Las Vegas Art Museum, Lorenzi Park, Las Vegas, Nevada, 1965 (First Oil Landscape Award)
Desert Research Institute for the Humanities Grant for acrylic paintings and plexiglass sculptures, 1968
The University of Nevada, Las Vegas Research Grant for resins and acrylics, 1969
The University of Nevada, Las Vegas Research Grant for oil, acrylic, and watercolor paintings, 1975
Phi Kappa Phi National Honor Society, 1976
Bicentennial Commission for the State of Nevada, 1976
University of Nevada, Las Vegas Sabbatical 1977
Bookbuilders West Book Show Certificate of Merit for Rivertrip, 1977
27th Annual Clark County National Round-Up Exhibition, Las Vegas Art Museum, Lorenzi Park, Las Vegas, NV 1978 (Contemporary Award and Graphics Award)
The Williams Andrews Clark Memorial Library and the Occidental College Library, Western Books Exhibit, Award Certificate for Rivertrip, Los Angeles, California, 1978
University of Nevada, Las Vegas Sabbatical, 1984–85
Phi Lambda Alpha Honorary Membership, 1985
Visual Arts Award, Seventh Annual Governor’s Arts Awards for the State of Nevada, Las Vegas, Nevada, February 1986
Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum) Commissioned Lithograph to Commemorate the Museum’s 50th Anniversary, 1987
Ueno Royal Museum, Tokyo, Japan, 1987 International Exhibition of Enamelling Art in Japan prize award, 1987
United Synagogue of America, New York, New York, 75th Anniversary Calendar Competition for the year 5748 (1987–1988) for Wall of Creation
Nevada State Council on the Arts Grant for the Rita Deanin Abbey 35 Year Retrospective, 1988
Enamel Guild: West, Award for The Cutting Edge, 1992 Pacific Enameling Symposium Juried Show, Art Center Gallery, Seattle Pacific University, Seattle, WA
Citizen Alert: Environmental Artist of the Year Award 1993 (In recognition of a lifetime commitment to art and the environment) Las Vegas, NV, May 7
Commissioned sculpture, Spirit Tower, a 20 ft., 11 tons, cor-ten steel sculpture for the Las Vegas Clark County Library District/Summerlin Library and Performing Arts Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, 1993
Lecturer: Invited by the Pacific Division of the American Association for the Advancement of Science to lecture on Art and Geology, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, California, for the 75th Annual Meeting, 1994
Commissioned by Temple Beth Sholom, Isaiah Stained-Glass Windows, (16 windows), Las Vegas, Nevada, 2000
Certificate of Appreciation, The 36th International Enamelling Art Exhibition in Japan, Twentieth Anniversary of Government Recognition, Ueno Royal Museum, Tokyo, Japan, 2002
Commissioned by Temple Adat Ami, Ner Tamid, (Eternal Light/Bronze), Las Vegas, Nevada, 2003
Las Vegas City Council, for Women’s History Month, her contributions to the Arts were recognized by the Mayor and Council Members, March 2008
City of Las Vegas Office of Cultural Affairs, Las Vegas Arts Commission, Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence in the Arts, May 25, 2012

Book Publications

Rivertrip. Flagstaff, AZ: Northland Press, (1977) (ISBN 13: 9780873581523)

Art and Geology: Expressive Aspects of the Desert. Layton, UT: Peregrine Smith Books, Inc., co-authored with G. William Fiero, (1986) (ISBN 13: 9780879052010)

Rio Grande Series. by Rita Deanin Abbey, Las Vegas, NV: Gan Or, (1996) (ISBN 13: 9780965287005)

In Praise of Bristlecone Pines. by Rita Deanin Abbey: The Artists’ Press, Johannesburg, (presently located in White River) South Africa: a hand-printed artist’s book of twenty-four Engravings and A Narrative Poem, (2000) (ISBN 13: 9780620253482)

Isaiah Stained-Glass Windows. by Rita Deanin Abbey, Las Vegas, NV: Gan Or, (2002) (ISBN 13: 9780965287012)

Seeds yet ever secret: poems and images. by Rita Deanin Abbey. Las Vegas, NV: Gan Or, (2013) (ISBN 13: 9780965287029)

Selected Commissions

Bicentennial Commission for the State of Nevada, 1976
Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum) Commissioned Lithograph to Commemorate the Museum’s 50th Anniversary, 1987
Commissioned sculpture, Spirit Tower, a 20 ft, 11 ton, cor-ten steel sculpture for the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District/Summerlin Library and Performing Arts Center, Las Vegas, NV, 1993
Commissioned by Temple Beth Sholom, Isaiah Stained-Glass Windows, 16 windows, (10 x 2 feet each), Las Vegas, NV, 2000
Commissioned by Temple Adat Ami, Ner Tamid, (Eternal Light/Bronze), Las Vegas, NV, 2003

Selected Awards

Visual Arts Award, Seventh Annual Governor’s Arts Awards for the State of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV, February 1986
Ueno Royal Museum, Tokyo, Japan, 1987 International Exhibition of Enamelling Art in Japan prize award, 1987
Citizen Alert: Environmental Artist of the Year Award 1993 Las Vegas, NV, May 7
Certificate of Appreciation, The 36th International Enamelling Art Exhibition in Japan, Twentieth Anniversary of Government Recognition, Ueno Royal Museum, Tokyo, Japan
Women’s History Month: Abbey was recognized for her contributions to the Arts by the Mayor and Members of the Las Vegas City Council, Las Vegas, NV, March 20

Artistry

Abstract works, accentuating movement, and tension are found in several of the artist's periods. During much of her first decade as a professional artist (1953 to 1962), Abbey moved away from creating realistic objects by experimenting with intuitive styles and by recognizing the possibilities inherent in Abstract Expressionism. The spontaneous, personalized gesture is readily apparent in the painterly surfaces of these early works. In the Oil Ink on Paper Series, Albuquerque of 1953, Abbey utilized the formal elements of composition-form, color, line, texture, and space-as subject matter to create "art for art's sake."

Studies with Hans Hofmann during the summers of 1952 and 1954, at the Hans Hofmann School of Fine Art in Provincetown, Massachusetts, further developed the artist's visual perception of color and spatial relationships. The confidence Abbey gained with Hofmann's encouragement resulted in an ultimate trust in her own creativity. She learned the dynamics, emotionality, and force of color on a two-dimensional surface.^[2] She analyzed architectonic aspects of the picture plane, which became an issue she continued to address throughout her career. Through the use of the nude model, landscape, and still life, fundamental structures of space and form in composition were explored. Abbey experienced the interaction of objects, which led to a greater visual understanding of space, a concept that was the culminating experience of her studies in those years.

While attending the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, from 1950 to 1954, Abbey developed a strong affinity for the landscape of the American Southwest. The desert was enormously alluring to her, becoming yet another important influence in her work.

Abbey used various aspects of nature to augment, on a subconscious level, her creative process. Developing her individual theory of perception, she learned "how to see what is out there."^[3] She experienced the line, pattern, color, space, light, form, and texture of geological formations. Such changing atmospheric conditions as rain, storms, wind, light, and clouds affected her visual development and became integral to her work. Her observations and experiences enabled her to recreate the spirit and essence of the desert in abstract compositions. Her impressions of the environment, whether microcosmic or macrocosmic, are reflected in her work by her concern for detail, contrast, and unity.

From 1956 to 1959 Abbey continued to experience the Southwest landscape, living in or near national monuments in Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. She painted out-of-doors, awed by the majesty of the desert, and fascinated by the geology, plant life, and wildlife. The Arches National Monument Series, 1956-1959, and the Taos Series, 1959-1962, contrast organic textures with geometric shapes while focusing on color with a textured impasto manner of paint application.

The Rivertrip Series, 1971-1977, evidenced a counterpart to the free execution and spontaneous style of earlier abstract works. Drawings, watercolors, and a narrative poem, which were published in 1977, provide a visual and literary diary of her experiences on a six-day raft trip on the Colorado River through Cataract Canyon, Utah.

Abbey's emotional responses to the natural environment are recorded in these highly expressive works. While small in scale, they are packed with explosive expression; using texture, Une, and color, she has effectively captured the spirit of the river and canyon.

The figurative works are not restricted to a single period; examples date from 1962 through 1983 and include two- and three-dimensional figures in a variety of media. Consistently during her career, Abbey has maintained several projects at once, extensively experimenting with materials and techniques. In the Early Figurative Series, 1962-1967, she created portraits and imaginative figures in landscapes using oil paint, oil pastel, ink, graphite, and charcoal. Her figurative wood sculptures also evolved during this period and culminated in And God Created Woman, a Philippine mahogany relief carving (88¼"x 341/4), which was later cast in bronze. In 1967 she used acrylic paint for the first time and experimented with different methods of applying it to canvas. Investigation of the human figure continued from 1972 to 1974 when she mixed such materials as sand and sawdust witl1 acrylic paint to create textured surfaces. Her figurative work reveals her study of anatomy and life-long experience of drawing from the model.

Works from 1967 to 1970 took a different turn. During this period Abbey temporarily broke away from using the landscape as a point of departure for creative expression, concentrating her investigation on the technology of various plastics and how they could be utilized. During this phase of experimentation, she constructed vacuum-formed sculptures, lightboxes, relief structures, and paintings, all of which served as vehicles for exploration into the effects of light absorption, transmission, and reflection.

Polyester resin offered an even wider scope for her creative imagination. In the Black Art Series, 1967-1969, Abbey executed relief structures and paintings by innovatively combining black paint with many different materials. She explored the range of color relationships by applying black paint on compositions that juxtaposed fiberglass, resin, wood, acrylic sheets, and polyurethane foam. The varying textures created by these materials absorb and reflect light differently; in these works, the artist again investigates the nature of light. A description of this black art appears in Art and Geology, a book Abbey wrote with geologist G. William Fiero. She explains:

The use of black as the lone color in a work of art emphasizes the significance of texture, light, and form. It also acts as a unifying force and conjures a multiplicity of meanings. Inner tensions from darkness come to life, pulsate, and enlarge under varied light conditions. Changing light also drastically alters form as it yields to surface contours.

Constituent materials determine texture as well as the qualities of light absorption and reflection. The interplay of light and texture offers a wide spectrum of rich graduated values and nuances within the one hue. The medium and the placement of forms in physical space determine the quality of blackness.^[4]

Contrasting tensions are created by combining reflective and absorbent materials, which stimulate and challenge the viewer's perception of light, space, and form. Abbey explains that "the acceptance of contra-position as a basis for innovation and motivation presupposes awareness, receptivity, and readiness to explore new possibilities of integration." ^[5]

During Abbey's investigation of the use of industrial materials and techniques, she executed her first architectural commission. A twenty-by-forty-foot cast polyester resin and fiberglass wall were installed at Temple Beth Sholom, Las Vegas, Nevada, in 1971. The rear-illuminated, translucent, semicircular Wall of Creation consists of twenty-three panels. Abbey used the Menorah, a Judaic symbol of enlightenment, as the basis for the mural's shape.

Her second monumental mural was installed in the lobby of the Judy Bayley Theater at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Consisting of five ac1·ylic-on-canvas panels, the hard-edge, non-objective composition with bold colors flow in sweeps and spirals across a thirty-foot span. The mural recreates sensuous curving lines of the female figure and a feeling of the motion that can be observed in nature, for example in certain geological formations where the flow of materials has occurred. Abbey says she intended to include a notion of rhythmic recurring cycles.

Two acrylic relief murals installed in 1976 also remind us of natural forms. The first, Underwater Currents, recalls the ebb and flow of water, waves, and underwater life. The second mural, an untitled bicentennial commission installed in the medical education building of the University Medical Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, interprets the growth and healing powers of plants.

Abbey continued her exploration and interest in textured surfaces while working on the mural commissions, producing the Texture Series between 1975 and 1977. Surfaces of the canvases were built up to achieve earth-like textures by the application of acrylic paint, sand. and sawdust mixed with polymer gloss medium. With highly textured surfaces suggestive of geological processes and forms, and with economic use of color, the paintings acquire a sense of the earth's tension, movement, and changing contour.

Energy forces and desert mysteries continued to fascinate her as Abbey embarked on a new series of paintings in 1977, the Desert Space Series. Abbey explained, "I have been striving to discover these forces through deeply felt distinctive images rather than consistency of style. I submit to the rhythm and order of the power of change and motion in my surroundings and in myself. My love of color, texture, and form, my curiosities, intuition, observations, and need for discovery keeps me from repeating what no longer seems challenging."^[6]

The Desert Space paintings fall into two basic categories: those executed in textural reliefs on which earth materials have been applied with a palette knife, and those using the canvas as a light source onto which translucent colors have been applied as a wash or glaze. These paintings focus on the evolution of movement, color. and form as Abbey searches for an inner landscape.

Abbey's interpretations of geological characteristics of the desert landscape grew more and more emotional, as expressed in the From Desert to Bible Vistas Series, 1979- 1987, paintings inspired by feelings, images, and experiences from living in the deserts of Israel and the southwestern United States. She combines a spirit of the ancient past with energy from her contemporary environment. The work is her observation and celebration of life as she explores the metaphysical realm by immersing herself in the physical one. She has continued an intuitive development of the compositional elements to discover images. Canvases packed with explosive color and dynamic shapes allude to complex and mysterious communications, inviting the viewer's interpretation. Through the evolvement of these paintings, Abbey has become a deliverer of messages, perhaps unconsciously. She has become a vehicle to express concerns of humanity, concerns revealed through the emotional and expressive use of color and form. Her messages arc grounded by an underlying structure that refers to topographical terrain. The tensions produced by fragmented movements and segments are resolved and unified, creating a strong illusion of three-dimensional space.

References to Bible stories and the vigorous use of line recalling letter shapes reveal Abbey's attraction to Hebrew calligraphy and history. The artist articulates the religious references by an active process of working through the appearances of nature toward a unified spiritual atmosphere. She has gained a warm, steady intensity of expression in her art through her relentless hard work and dedication. Her faithful devotion to her art has made her paintings a form of religious discipline.

The collages of the Aleph Beth Series, which contain cut and torn fragments of opaquely dyed and coated papers, printed letters, and images combined with painted or drawn elements, were created in the early 1980s when Abbey also was immersed in the From Desert to Bible Vistas Series. The intimate and playful collages provided relief from the larger and more vigorous paintings. The Gan Or Series,1984-1986, and the experimental Compute1· Drawings, 1984-1987, also provided a respite.

The Gan Or Series: The Architectural Experience drawings document and express personal fantasies and feelings concerning the experience of building a solar home and studio in the desert. Gan Or means "The Garden of Light" in Hebrew. She also designed and constructed for the home two sculptural fireplaces made of rerod and structo-lite. Drawings of the fireplaces appear in the series.

The Computer Drawings, executed on a Macintosh computer using the MacPaint program, enabled Abbey to work with the same non-objective compositional concerns of line, texture, and gradations of light and dark that she uses in any other medium. In creating a composition, Abbey says she has contrasted "geometric planes with painterly qualities in order to activate spatial dynamics while exploring the range of abilities of the MacPaint program."^[7]

The painter's recent work, the Porcelain Enamel Fired on Steel Series,1984-1988, discloses her rediscovery of the appeal of smaller, informal compositions executed with playful and spontaneous gestures. But she has also created multi-sectioned, hammered steel relief enamels as large as eight feet in height. To research the technology for producing large-scale porcelain enamels on steel, she took a sabbatical year from her position as professor of art in drawing and painting at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Abbey had harbored the desire to study the technique since1967 when she first saw Stefan Knapp's 50-foot-by-200-foot fused glass on steel mural. Its scale and the nonfading colors of fused glass made a lasting impression on her. The non-objective compositional concepts and handling of the enameling medium developed by Abbey11ave been guided primarily by her painting processes; she has successfully transferred painterly techniques and forms to the enamels. Once again, Abbey's multifaceted vision and use of varied materials have provided both the context and the source for fresh expression. In describing her processes, Abbey explains:

"When working with oils on canvas, I apply the paint in a textured impasto manner. With acrylics, I build thin layers of translucent paint with a brush, so that light reflects off the ground of the canvas and through the layered application of colors to create the illusion of volume and depth. In enameling, because of the intrinsic qualities of the medium, I am able to combine these different approaches with the added technique of spraying to achieve the contrast of viscous textures and transparent layering.^[8]

Bringing together these twelve disparate groups highlights their parallels and similarities, despite their varying dates, media, and formats. Abbey experimented with an extraordinary variety of styles and materials in a peculiarly historical way. Characteristic of her work has been a tendency to borrow ideas from her past, unselfconsciously recalling and re-examining ideas that she flirted with briefly perhaps fifteen or twenty years before. She takes the idea and explores it again, almost as if no time had elapsed. Abbey also has found useful another sort of "raid" on her own work: different formats or media often act as resources or reservoirs of inspiration for each other. The exhibition reveals a constant and continuous dialogue between past and present works, produced with substantial diversity over the span of the artist's thirty-five-year career. Her awareness of Abstract Expressionism and her own abstract art are focused on color, movement, and the interaction of organic and geometric non-objective elements of composition. The free-form abstractions of the 1950s are re-experienced through several mature yet fundamental ideas of her works of the 1980s.

Elements in the earliest group of paintings, Oil Ink on Paper Series, Albuquerque, 1953, have reappeared in the latest group, Albuquerque Revisited: Monotypes on Paper, 1987. Both series are less structured than most of her work and were executed in an experimental approach in which the exploration of the medium evolved into the development of an image. Several paintings from the 1950s, including Still Life with Orange and Summer Lightning, illustrate characteristics that have remained key elements of Abbey's aesthetic concerns, displaying the dexterity of draftsmanship, spontaneity, and fascination with the properties of line that can be seen as sources for later work. A similar boldness of line enlivens such paintings as Three Mesas, Stripe #9, The Promised Land, and Nenana River, Denali. Diagonal movements and planes constitute another striking feature of Still Life with Orange and Summer Lightning. A strong correlation can be seen between those works and the latest paintings. Kotel: Wall and Emergence most clearly illustrate this parallel.

In one early group of paintings, characterized by Serenity and Taos Solitude, Abbey reduced elements to shape, form, and color fundamental to all her later works. The forms were dominated by soft-edged and sensuously painted shapes in warm colors. In the late 1970s, Abbey adapted these shapes to geometric forms that fused color with structure, as in Desert Space and Nascent Sandstone. The enamel work of 1984, Unit of Eight, completes this principle. The painterly edges and distillation of color suggest a unifying interest in a spontaneous but orderly investigation of color.

A characteristic linking the Rivertrip Series watercolors of 1971 and 1972 with some of the Desert Series paintings is the focus on value relationships. Abbey orchestrated contrasts of value in her watercolors: gradations, ranging from opaque areas of black ink to transparent veils of thin wash or occasional passages of untouched paper, established a lively visual harmony. She reapplied this compositional principle later in the paintings of the late 1970s and 1980s (Desert Space, Canyon Echoes, and Dead Sea Scrolls). In both watercolors and acrylic paintings, Abbey has used a rich range of color to arrive at moving surfaces of varied and unexpected rhythms. The veils of transparent color achieved in Desert Space and Canyon Echoes conjure feelings of indeterminate space. The pictorial patterns formed in Desert Space evolve from shapes that recede and advance in a spatial field, while the floating veils of colored atmosphere here in Canyon Echoes are fused with diagonal lines with electric-white edges.

Abbey has actively pursued numerous disciplines in the arts throughout her career.

In the search for an effective compositional approach in the early 1970s, she executed such hard-edged figurative paintings as Green Repose, Tranquility, and Dance Eternal. By dealing with fundamental shape and color, her direct approach placed the focus on the monumental figure without the interference of detail. '"Dance Eternal' ... demonstrates Abbey's excellence as a draftsman. Her line, always bold and rhythmic, bursting with supple eloquence ... "^[9]

The lyrical movement of Ophelia, a 1962 figurative painting, is sensed again in the untitled Judy Bayley Theater lobby mural begun in 1974. With Underwater Currents, a commission began the same year. Abbey diversified within the hard-edge format, adapting it to new and unexpected curvilinear forms, using opaque plexiglass sheets instead of acrylic paint. A second plexiglass mural, the state of Nevada bicentennial commission, was completed in 1976. The plexiglass relief murals contain colorful, curvilinear planes in a hard-edge style similar in feeling to the Judy Bayley Theater mural. Many of the acrylic sheets were sandblasted to alter the surface texture and color value. The highly reflective forms play against the sandblasted surfaces, readdressing the issues of light absorption and reflection found in the Black Art Series.

In addition to Abbey's expansive mural projects, her in-studio paintings of the mid-1970s began to exhibit yet another flexibility. Her eagerness to explore new materials continued to foster experimentation with textures. A use of restricted hues mixed with sand, sawdust, and earth created flowing planes of textured surfaces. In the figurative and texture paintings of this time, Abbey used solid planes of color to unify and accent a work's essential elements, another technique she later adapted to paintings in the From Desert to Bible Vistas Series. Arisah: Cat's Cradle and Negev make similar use of solid planes of surface color.

Many of her drawings from the model, such as #7 and #98, share similarities with the figure and textured paintings-the unmistakable presence of Abbey's hand in the application of media, the attention to detail, the incorporation of gestural "accidents" that enliven surfaces, and the use of a limited range and number of hues within a single work.

Desert Space Series and From Desert to Bible Vistas Series follow each other in sequence and possess several similarities. Both combine mysterious structural forms with haunting atmospheric qualities. In the act of painting, the artist strives to discover images based on visual perceptions and subjective impressions of desert phenomena, as well as the meaningful and important aspects selected from her everyday life. These two groups of paintings are diverse in style, but their unifying element and Abbey's source of inspiration are the forces of nature. While nebulous forms and relaxed lines in the Desert Space Series seem to float and dissolve into atmospheric color, the forms, and lines in From Desert to Bible Vistas Series are more formally structured, with rigid shapes and detail. By 1979 many of the Desert Space canvases contained more complicated structures, vivacious and contrasting colors, and more vigorous use of line than did the earlier works. In Elements and Daybreak in a Region Almost Empty, however, forms and structure are no longer 11ebulous; they remain in a state of flux, characterizing the concept of geological time. The jagged and broken edge, used in later paintings, appears in these for the first time. Daybreak in a Region Almost Empty is the transitional piece between the two Desert series. One art critic describes it:

Here the earthy topography seems to liquidate in part and finally breaks through the higher atmospheres. While objects within the composition seem to be in jarring conflict, the totality achieves a harmonious resolution. One senses that Abbey's observations of nature embrace the spectrum from the static to the most disruptively cataclysmic.^[10]

The feeling of geological time is perceived again in the recent painting Kotel: Wall. Forms and matter emerge from a solid unit; there is a sense of elements fragmenting, decaying, and then rejoining or developing into a new form. The separation and rejoining theme is consistent with some of Abbey's previous paintings, which are imbued with the spirit of balance and harmony.

Like so many of her art forms, the fired porcelain enamels also descend &om earlier works. They make reference to her creative activity in the 1950s, as seen in the early paintings Perception of Baja, High Noon at Arches, and Still Life on a Mantle, which contain bold color combinations that offer an intensely visual and sensual experience. The interplay of the earth's forces of uplift and erosion is balanced and frozen in geological forms. The early works are clearly antecedents of the mid-1980s enamels. The compositional and spatial forces were further developed in the enamels Payette River, Heraldry at Eden, Nenana River, Denali, and Alaska.

Abbey's approach has become more and more intuitive; she possesses an unmediated perception of the image she produces, and her unconscious/subconscious knowledge searches for origins or roots in nature and in herself. She has become the instrument by which images appear to her, and to us.* * * *

After twenty-two years of teaching at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Abbey became emeritus professor of art in 1987. Her accomplishments as an innovative artist and devoted teacher are evident in the incredible body of artwork she has created and the reputation she has earned among her students. Transmitting to her students the joys to be gained from art, stressing the hard work and discipline involved in personal creativity, Abbey has given freely of her time and experience and has inspired hundreds of her students. Katherine Plake Hough

Reference Rita Deanin Abbey and G. William Fiero, Art and Geology: Expressive Aspects of the Desert (Layton, Utah, Peregrine Smith Books, 1986): 23. 4 Ibid. 5 Rita Deanin Abbey, paper on "Desert Space Series," Las Vegas, Nevada, 1979. 6 Rita Deanin Abbey, paper on "Computer Drawings," Las Vegas, Nevada, 1984. 7 Rita Deanin Abbey, "Porcelain Enamel Fired on Steel Panels and Hammered Relief Shapes,Leonardo 21, no. 2 (forthcoming 1988). 8 Dan Skea, "Magic of the Desert," Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (May 4, 1986): 9cc. 9 Mary Trainor, "Abbey: Just Deserts," Worcester Magazine (Worcester, MA) (October 13, 1982): 40.

Group Exhibitions Early 1950s: City Center Gallery, New York, New York
1954: 149th Annual Exhibition of Painting and Sculpture, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1958: Art U.S.A. 1958, Madison Square Garden, New York, New York
1959: Arizona Annual, Tucson Art Center, Tucson, Arizona
1960: New Mexico Biennial Traveling Exhibition, Museum of New Mexico, Museum of Fine Arts, Santa Fe, New Mexico
1961: Photographs, Prints, and Drawings in New Mexico, Museum of New Mexico, Museum of Fine Arts, Santa Fe, New Mexico
1961–1962: New Mexico Biennial Traveling Exhibition, Museum of New Mexico, Museum of Fine Arts, Santa Fe, New Mexico
1963: Elizabeth, New Jersey Invitational Annual Art Exhibition, Elizabeth, New Jersey
1965: 9th Annual Round-Up National Exhibition Las Vegas Art Museum, Lorenzi Park, Las Vegas, Nevada
1966: School of Fine Arts First Annual Invitational Art Exhibition, University of Judaism Art Gallery, Los Angeles, California
10th Annual Round-Up National Exhibition, Las Vegas Art Museum, Lorenzi Park, Las Vegas, Nevada
1967: Nevada Festival of the Arts, Carson City, Nevada
Ryder Gallery, Los Angeles, California
The West: 80 Contemporaries, University of Arizona Art Gallery, Tucson, Arizona
Ziv Gallery, Tel Aviv, Israel
1968: 18th Annual Festival Exhibition, Tucson Art Center, Tucson, Arizona
Luminism, an International Exhibition, Esther Robles Gallery, Los Angeles, California: traveled to California State College, Hayward, California; Salt Lake Art Center, Salt Lake City, Utah; Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah; Grant Hall Fine Arts Gallery, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
Rocky Mountain Federation Art Exhibitions 1968–1970: traveled to Utah, Nevada, Idaho, Montana, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Wyoming
1969: All-Nevada Juried Exhibition of Prints, Drawings, and Photographs, Nevada Art Gallery, Reno, Nevada
Arts 1969 Festival, Painting Invitational, Church Fine Arts Gallery, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, Nevada
4th Biennial Exhibition of Inter-Mountain Painting and Sculpture, Salt Lake Art Center, Salt Lake City, Utah
Invitational Art Exhibition, Sinai Temple, Los Angeles, California
Invitational Group Show, Gallery West, Reno, Nevada
1970: Bertha Eccles Community Arts Center; Ogden, Utah
School of Fine Arts Second Annual Invitational Art Exhibition, University of Judaism Art Gallery, Los Angeles, California
17th Annual Open Exhibition, Northern California Arts Inc., Sacramento, California
Tribute Exhibition to Three University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Faculty Members, Church Fine Arts Gallery, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, Nevada
1971: Drawing 1971, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico
Rocky Mountain Federation Print Exhibition
1971–1972: traveled to Utah, Idaho, Montana, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Wyoming
1972: National Small Sculpture and Drawing Exhibit, San Diego State College, San Diego, California
Group Exhibition, Dunlin Gallery of Art, Knoxville, Tennessee
1973: Faculty Exhibition, Grant Hall Fine Arts Gallery, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
Reno Artist’s Cooperative Gallery, Reno, Nevada
This is Nevada, Las Vegas Art Museum, Las Vegas, Nevada
Group Exhibition, Springfield Art Association, Springfield, Illinois
15th Annual National Exhibition of Prints and Drawings, Oklahoma Art Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
10th Drawing and Small Sculpture Exhibition, Art Gallery, Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana
1974: 16th Annual National Exhibition of Prints and Drawings, Oklahoma Art Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Group Exhibition, Art Gallery, Del Mar College, Corpus Christi, Texas
Group Exhibition, Salt Lake Art Center, Salt Lake City, Utah
1975: Transworld Art Show, Hilton Hotel, Las Vegas, NV
Nevada Arts, Inc., Airport Gallery, Las Vegas, Nevada
1976: UNLV Art Department Faculty Exhibition, Las Vegas Art Museum, Lorenzi Park, Las Vegas, Nevada
Clark County Courthouse Exhibition, Las Vegas, NV Clark County Courthouse, Las Vegas, Nevada
1977: Faculty Exhibition, Grant Hall Fine Arts Gallery, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
1978: Las Vegas Printmakers, Clark County Library Gallery, Flamingo Branch, Las Vegas, Nevada
27th Annual Clark County Art Round-Up Exhibition, Las Vegas Art Museum, Lorenzi Park, Las Vegas, Nevada
Boulder City Library Benefit Exhibit, Burk Gallery, Boulder City, Nevada
1979: Faculty Exchange Exhibition, Church Fine Arts Gallery, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, Nevada
Faculty Exhibition, Grant Hall Fine Arts Gallery, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada 1980: An Exhibition of Nevada’s Nuclear Image, Sheppard Fine Arts Gallery, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno Nevada
Faculty Exhibition, Grant Hall Fine Arts Gallery, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
Selections from the Permanent Collection, Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum) Palm Springs, California
1982: Faculty and Student Exhibition, Reed Whipple Cultural Center, City of Las Vegas, Las Vegas Nevada
Faculty Exhibition, Grant Hall Fine Arts Gallery, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
Nevada Contemporary, Sierra Nevada Museum of Art, (presently Nevada Museum of Art) Reno, Nevada: traveled to Alta Ham Fine Arts Gallery, (presently Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery), University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
1983: Faculty Exhibition, Alta Ham Fine Arts Gallery, (presently Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery), University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
New Acquisitions Exhibitions, Sierra Nevada Museum of Art, (presently Nevada Museum of Art), Reno, Nevada
1984: Faculty Exhibition, Alta Ham Fine Arts Gallery, (presently Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery), University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
Grant Hall Fine Arts Gallery, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
Skirball Museum, Hebrew Union College, Los Angeles, California
43rd Annual Cedar City Art Exhibition: The New Realism, Braithewaite Fine Arts Gallery Southern Utah State College, Cedar City, Utah
Las Vegas Artists, Deluxe Gallery, Reno, Nevada
1985: Jewish Federation Council 1985 Exhibit, Galleries of the Jewish Community Building, Los Angeles, California
Enamels International 1985, Long Beach Museum of Art, Long Beach, California
Faculty Exhibition, Alta Ham Fine Arts Gallery, (presently Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery), University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
McCarran International Airport Exhibition, Las Vegas, Nevada, (1985)
University of Nevada, Las Vegas Faculty Exhibition, University of West Florida, Pensacola, Florida
1986: Nevada Biennial, Sierra Nevada Museum of Art, (presently Nevada Museum of Art), Reno, Nevada: traveled to Alta Ham Fine Arts Gallery, (presently Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery), University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
Women Artists of Nevada Invitational, Artspace, Clark County Community College, North Las Vegas, Nevada
Glass on Metal, 1986, Jewish Community Center Gallery, San Diego, California
Premiere Biennale lnternationale d’Email Laval 1986, Les Biennales de Laval, Laval, Quebec, Canada
Faculty Exhibition, Alta Ham Fine Arts Gallery, (presently Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery), University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
1987: Enamels ‘87, Plum Gallery, Kensington, Maryland
Second International Enamel Art Exhibition, Kunstverein Coburg E.V., Coburg, West Germany
Glass on Metal, 1987, Gallery 21, San Diego, California
The Enamelist Society International Exhibition, Sarah Squeri Gallery, Cincinnati, Ohio
Diamond Reflections, Sierra Nevada Museum of Art, Reno, Nevada 1987
Faculty Exhibition, Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
The Book as Art, Library and Research Center, The National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, D.C.
‘87 International Exhibition of Enamelling Art in Japan, Ueno Royal Museum, Tokyo, Japan
Harris Knudson Memorial Exhibition, Museum of Natural History, (presently Marjorie Barrick Museum), University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada: traveled to Manville Gallery, School of Medicine, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, Nevada
Chanukah Exhibition ‘87, The Jewish Community Museum, San Francisco, California
1988: Desert Sculptor's Association Annual Exhibit, Nevada State Museum and Historical Society, Las Vegas, Nevada
Easter at the Whitehouse, The Whitehouse, Washington D.C.
Nevada Biennial ‘88, Sierra Nevada Museum of Art, (presently Nevada Museum of Art), Reno, Nevada: traveled to Nevada Institute of Contemporary Art, Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
Faculty Exhibition, Sheppard Gallery, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, Nevada: traveled to Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
Fall Group Exhibition, Valerie Miller Fine Art Gallery, Palm Desert, California
Models and Maquettes, Johnson Atelier Extension Gallery, Mercerville, New Jersey
Highlights of the Collection, Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum) Palm Springs, California
1989: 2nd National Invitational Exhibition, Clary-Miner Gallery, Buffalo, New York
Uncommon Denominators, Valerie Miller Fine Art Gallery, Palm Desert, California
3rd National Invitational Exhibition, Clary-Miner Gallery, Buffalo, New York
Figure Drawing Competition and Marathon, Mendocino Art Center, Mendocino, California
The Desert Sculptors' Association Exhibition, Museum of Natural History, (presently Marjorie Barrick Museum), University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
Enamelist Society 1989 Juried Exhibition, Carnegie Arts Center, Covington, Kentucky
20th Century Art from the Permanent Collection, Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum) Palm Springs, California
Color and Image: Recent American Enamels, circulated by the Gallery Association of New York State, Hamilton, New York: traveled to Tyler Art Gallery, SUNY at Oswego, Oswego, New York; The Heckscher Museum, Huntington, New York
Albuquerque ‘50’s, University of New Mexico Art Museum, Albuquerque, New Mexico
1990: Color and Image: Recent American Enamels, circulated by the Gallery Association of New York State, Hamilton, New York: traveled to University Art Museum, Nelson Fine Arts Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona; Art Gallery, Towson State University, Baltimore, Maryland; The Hyde Collection, Glens Falls, New York; The Continental Art Gallery, Continental Insurance Company, New York, NY
Nevada Biennial 90, Nevada State Museum and Historical Society, Lorenzi Park, Las Vegas, Nevada: traveled to Nevada Museum of Art (E.L. Wiegand Museum), Reno, Nevada
Enamels Southwest 1990, San Diego Enamel Guild, Studio 5, Spanish Village, Balboa Park, California
Pacific Enameling Invitational Exhibition, Highline Community College, Seattle, Washington
At the Light’s Edge, Art Department Faculty Exhibition, Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
Opening Exhibition, Markus Galleries, Las Vegas, Nevada
Wall Enamel: Painting with Glass, 14th Annual National Invitational Exhibit, Liberty Gallery, Louisville, Kentucky
Art from the Permanent Collection, Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum) Palm Springs, California
Abstract/Geometric Graphics from the Permanent Collection, Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum) Palm Springs, CA
UNLV Art Faculty, McCarran Art Gallery, McCarran International Airport, Las Vegas, Nevada 1991: Color and Image: Recent American Enamels, circulated by the Gallery Association of New York State, Hamilton, New York: traveled to The Continental Art Gallery, Continental Insurance Company, New York, New York
Group Exhibition, Markus Galleries, Las Vegas, Nevada
Images From Las Vegas: 5 Contemporary Artists, McCarran Art Gallery, McCarran International Airport, Las Vegas, Nevada
Opening Exhibition, Valerie Miller Fine Art Gallery, Palm Desert, California
Enamels Southwest ‘91, Gallery 21, San Diego, California
Third Enamelist Juried Exhibition, Carnegie Arts Center, Covington, Kentuck
Life Lines: Third Annual Figure Drawing Competition, Mendocino Art Center, Mendocino, California
‘91 International Exhibition of Enamelling Art in Japan, Ueno Royal Museum, Tokyo, Japan
1992: Smart House, UNLV Faculty Exhibit, Las Vegas, Nevada.
Some of the Newest: Recent Acquisitions, Museum of New Mexico, Museum of Fine Arts, Santa Fe, New Mexico
1992 Glass on Metal Invitational, USA • Canada • Mexico, Rock House Gallery, Arlington, Texas, East Meets West Art Exhibition, “May” Junko Takao, New York City, New York
Eclectic Conspiracy, Spokane Art School, Spokane, Washington
The 4th Annual Private Collections/Public Viewing: The Graphic Medium, Nevada Institute of Contemporary Art, Donna Beam Gallery, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
The Cutting Edge, 1992 Pacific Enameling Symposium Juried Show, Art Center Gallery, Seattle Pacific University, Seattle, Washington
The Cutting Edge, 1992 Pacific Enameling Symposium Invitational, Charles and Emma Frye Art Museum, Seattle, Washington
1993: MAPS V, Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum) Palm Springs, California
Dynamic Limitations, The Enamelist Society IV International Biennal Exhibition, A.B. Closson, Jr. Company, The Fine Arts Gallery, Cincinnati, Ohio ‘93 International Exhibition of Enamelling Art in Japan, Ueno Royal Museum, Tokyo, Japan
Art–In, On and Out of the Bag, Nevada Institute for Contemporary Art/The Cannery, Las Vegas, Nevada
Faculty Exhibition, Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
1994: Women’s Work, Nevada Institute for Contemporary Art/The Cannery, Las Vegas, Nevada
Enamels Southwest‘94, Juried Exhibition, Gallery 21, San Diego, California
Las Vegas, U. S. A! Invitational Exhibition, Nevada Institute for Contemporary Art/The Cannery, Las Vegas, Nevada
1995: Another Dimension, Nevada Institute for Contemporary Art/The Cannery, Las Vegas, Nevada
Enamels Southwest‘95, Gallery 21, San Diego, California
Third International Enamel Art Exhibition (Email 3) Kunstverein Coburg, Coburg, Germany
Enamel Today (Email Heute), Villa am Aabach, Uster, Switzerland
Great Expectations, The Enamelist Society V International Biennial Exhibition, Charles H. Taylor Arts Center, Hampton, Virginia
Art 3, Third Annual Invitational Exhibition, Nevada Institute for Contemporary Art/The Cannery, Las Vegas, Nevada
International Exhibition of Enamelling Art in Japan, Ueno Royal Museum, Tokyo, Japan
Art Department Faculty Exhibit, Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
Great Expectations, The Enamelist Society V International Biennial Exhibition, Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
1996: Absolut Nevada, Nevada Institute for Contemporary Art/The Cannery, Las Vegas, Nevada
The Jean Weinberger Museum of Jewish Culture, The Jewish Federation of Las Vegas, Marjorie Barrick Museum, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
All Things Great But Small VI, Stremmel Gallery, Reno, Nevada
9th International Exhibition of Enamelling Art in Japan, Sponsored by The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The Agency for Cultural Affairs, Metropolis of Tokyo. Musashino City Hall, Musashino-shi, Tokyo, Japan
9th International Exhibition of Enamelling Art in Japan, Hiroshima Perfectural Museum of Art, Momiji Kaikan, Hiroshima, Japan
Opening of the Steve Chase Art Wing, Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum) Palm Springs, California
1997: Second Annual International Juried Enamel Exhibit, The Northern California Enamel Guild, InSight Gallery, San Francisco, California
Tradition & Transformation: Enamels 97. Sixth International Enamelist Society Invitational and Juried Exhibitions: Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, Gatlinburg, Tennessee; Gray Art Gallery, Jenkins Fine Art Center, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina
The 31st International Enamelling Art Exhibition in Japan, Ueno Royal Museum, Tokyo, Japan
1998: Holocaust Exhibition, Las Vegas Art Museum, Las Vegas, Nevada.
Steve Chase Art Wing Group Exhibition, Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum) Palm Springs, California
1999: Steve Chase Art Wing Group Exhibition, Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum) Palm Springs, California
Masterworks, Harbinger Gallery, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
The 33rd International Enamelling Art Exhibition in Japan, Ueno Royal Museum, Tokyo, Japan
2000: American Enamels; Random Modern Gallery, Tacoma, Washington
2002: The 36th International Enamelling Art Exhibition in Japan, Twentieth Anniversary of Government Recognition, Ueno Royal Museum, Tokyo, Japan Color, Light, and Illusion: Glass on Metal, San Diego Enamel Guild, Gallery 21, San Diego, California
Sixth International Juried Enamel Exhibition, Northern California Enamel Guild, Richmond Art Center, Richmond, California
2003: Steve Chase Art Wing Group Exhibition, Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum) Palm Springs, California
2004: Playing with Fire: Glass on Metal, San Diego Enamel Guild, Gallery 21, Spanish Village, Balboa Park, California
NCEG 7th International Enamel Exhibition, The ACCI Gallery, Berkeley, California
Steve Chase Art Wing Exhibition from the Permanent Collection, Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum) Palm Springs, California
2005: Steve Chase Art Wing Exhibition from the Permanent Collection, Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum) Palm Springs, California
2006: NCEG 8th International Juried Enamel Exhibition, The Richmond Arts Center, Richmond, California
Vitreousity: Visions in Enameling, San Diego Enamel Guild, Gallery 21, Spanish Village, Balboa Park, California
2007: Fusion, 11th Biennial International Juried Exhibition, Enamel Society, Columbus Cultural Arts Center, Columbus, Ohio
Fabulous Fiftieth, Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
2011: Blast from the Past. ‘60s & ‘70s Geometric Abstraction, Palm Springs Art Museum, Palm Springs, California (July 16 ¬– December 23)
2014: Macrocosm/Microcosm: Abstract Expressionism in the American Southwest, Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, The University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma (October 2, 2014–January 4, 2015)
2015: Recent Acquisitions, UNLV Marjorie Barrick Museum, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada (19 June – 19 September)

Public Collections University Art Museum, The University of New Mexico, Colored Affair; Ochre and Yellow; Unending Sky, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 1953
Jonson Gallery of The University of New Mexico Art Museum, Small Monoprints 1955–1960, #11 & #12; RDA Drawing #101, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 1954–1955
Museum of New Mexico, Museum of Fine Arts, Small Monoprints 1955–1960, #27, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 1959
Nevada Art Gallery, Reno, Nevada, 1969
Temple Beth Sholom, Wall of Creation, Las Vegas, Nevada, 1971 (Commission)
Judy Bayley Theater Lobby, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Bridge Mountain, Las Vegas, Nevada, 1974
Flora Dungan Humanities Building, University of Nevada, Memorial Bust of Flora Dungan, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada, 1974 (Commission)
University Medical Center, Medical Education Building, State of Nevada Bicentennial Commission, Las Vegas, Nevada, 1976 (Commission)
Bank of America (formerly Valley Bank of Nevada), Canyon Echoes, Las Vegas, Nevada, 1978
Sierra Nevada Museum of Art, (presently Nevada Museum of Art), Resh, #20, Reno, Nevada, 1981
Scripps Clinic and Research Foundation, Immunology Building Phase III, Kawa: River, A–23, La Jolla, California, 1985
Ruttenberg Arts Foundation, Spiritmover, 6/100, Chicago, Illinois, 1987
Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum), Spiritmover, Palm Springs, California, 1987 (Commission)
Marjorie Barrick Museum, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Outside of Time, A–42, Las Vegas, Nevada, 1988
Bank of America (formerly Valley Bank of Nevada), New Brunswick Series, VIII & XV; Thunder Canyon, A–49; The Four Seasons: Spring, A–53; Summer, A–54; Fall, A–55; Winter, A–56, Las Vegas, Nevada, 1988
Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick Series, IV & VII, New Brunswick, New Jersey, 1988
Las Vegas-Clark County Library District, Summerlin Library and Performing Arts Center, Spirit Tower Las Vegas, Nevada, 1993 (Commission)
Kunstverein Coburg e. V., Breakers, A–60, Coburg, Germany, 1989
Temple Beth Sholom, Isaiah Stained-Glass Windows (16), Las Vegas, Nevada, 2000 (Commission)
Temple Adat Ami, Ner Tamid, (Eternal Light)
Las Vegas, Nevada, 2003 (Commission)

Publications by Abbey “Color: Man and Nature.” Art Journal XXXI/I (Fall 1971): 110, 112.
“Physics for Artists.” Leonardo 8, no. 3 (Summer 1975): 221–222.
Section on the use of polyester resin as an art form in Thelma R. Newman, Crafting with Plastics. Radnor, PA: Chilton Book Company, 1975 168–9, 177.

“Three Murals: Cast Polyester Resin Panels, Acrylic Painting, and Plexiglass Relief.” Leonardo 10, no. l (Winter 1977): 16, 31–32.

Rivertrip. Flagstaff, AZ: Northland Press, 1977.

“Art and Geoscience.” Quicksilver–University of Nevada’s Cultural Arts Magazine (Las Vegas, NV) (Spring 1983): 26–27.

“Finding the Nature of Art.” Inside out–A Faculty/ Staff/Alumni Publication of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas 4, no. 3 (Las Vegas, NV) (February 1983): 2.

“John Killmaster’s West Mountain Enamel Workshop, 1984.” Enamel Guild: West Newsletter (Seattle, WA) (December 1984).

Art and Geology: Expressive Aspects of the Desert. Layton, UT: Peregrine Smith Books, Inc., 1986, co-authored with G. William Fiero.
“Porcelain Enamel Fired On Steel Panels and Hammered Relief Shapes.” Leonardo 21, no. 2 (1988): 135–139.
“Porcelain Enamel Fired On Steel Panels and Hammered Relief Shapes.” The Vitreous Voice, 3, no. 5 (October 1988): 1, 12–15.
“Inview: Rita Deanin Abbey.” Glass on Metal, Vol. 8, no. 1 (February 1989): 14–16.
Rita Deanin Abbey Rio Grande Series, Las Vegas, NV: Gan Or, 1996.
“Inview: Rita Deanin Abbey.” Glass on Metal, Vol. 17, no. 4 (October 1998): 76–79.
In Praise of Bristlecone Pines, by Rita Deanin Abbey: a hand-printed artist’s book of twenty-four Engravings and a Narrative Poem, Johannesburg (currently White River), South Africa: The Artists’ Press, 2000.
Isaiah Stained-Glass Windows, by Rita Deanin Abbey, Las Vegas, NV: Gan Or, 2002.
Seeds Yet Ever Secret - Poems and Images, by Rita Deanin Abbey, Las Vegas, NV: Gan Or, 2013
Desert Space Museum, The Art of Rita Deanin Abbey: Brochure for the Western Museums Association’s group tour of the Desert Space Museum during their 2014 Las Vegas convention meeting. (5 October 2014)
“Eleven Artists Exhibit at UNM.” Albuquerque Journal (Albuquerque, NM) (1951)
“Rita Abbey Exhibits in Jonson Gallery.” Albuquerque Journal (Albuquerque, NM) (1955)
“Artist Plans NY Exhibit.” Jersey Journal (Jersey City, NJ) (15 February 1957): 6.
“First New York One-Man Show for Former Passaic Artist.” The Herald News (Passaic, NJ) (22 February 1957).
“Rita Deanin Abbey Exhibits in New York.” Albuquerque Journal (Albuquerque, NM) (1957)
Art: USA '58. New York, NY: Art Expositions Inc., 1958: 35.
“Taos, Albuquerque Artists Win Four Purchase Awards.” The New Mexican (Albuquerque, NM) (19 February 1961): 20.
“Art Shows Open in Vegas–NSU Art.” The Nevadan–Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (7 May 1967): 33.
The West: 80 Contemporaries. Tucson, AZ: Tucson Art Center, l967: 9.
Segerblom, Gene. “Light-Motion-Space.” The Nevadan–Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (17 March 1968): 3–5.
18th Annual Festival Exhibit. Tucson, AZ: Tucson Art Center, 1968: 5.
“Local Artists Honored.” Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (19 January 1969): 4A.

“In Art–Black is Beautiful.” Las Vegas Voice (Las Vegas, NV) (6 November 1969): 12.

Author, Artist, Album. Los Angeles, CA: University of Judaism, 1969: 6.
Howard, William. Arts 1969 Festival. Reno, NV: University of Nevada, Reno, 1969: 5.
Black Art, televised exhibition and lecture. (Producers) University of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, NV, 1969.
Dialogue, televised interview. KTNV–TV, Channel 13, Las Vegas, NV, June 23, 1970.
Scianna, Kerin, “The People Speak”, Women in Art, KVVU–TV, Channel 5, Henderson, NV, June 5, 1970.
Jucevic, Rose Ann. “Reno.” Westart (Reno, NV) (17 July 1970): 16.
McCune, Cathryn. The Arizona Daily Star (Tucson, AZ) (23 April 1972): 2E.
“Art Exhibit Features Black-Color Works.” Wildcat, University of Arizona, (Tucson, AZ) (27 April 1972)
“Haifa.” The Jerusalem Post Magazine. (Jerusalem, Israel) (18 August 1972): 33.
“Artist Rita Abbey to Display Black Exhibit.” Daily Herald (Provo, UT) (20 May 1973): 42.
“Black Exhibit.” Salt Lake Tribune (Salt Lake City, UT) (20 May 1973): E3.
“Local Professor Shows in New York.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (4 October 1974): 19.
“Giant Mural Painted by University Artist.” The Nevadan–Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (5 October 1974): 8.
“Art in a Big Way.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (6 October 1974).
Pictures on Exhibit–Collector’s Guide to World Wide Art. New York, New York: Pictures Publishing Co., November 1974: 47.
Sansom, Vivian. “From an Industrial Resin, A Thing of Beauty.” Modern Plastics 51, no. 1 (1974): 30.
“Placed on UNLV Campus Bronze Bust of Late Flora Dungan Created by Prof.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (20 April 1975): 5.
“UNLV Plans Exhibit of Rita Abbey Works.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (1 May 1975): 3.
“Abbey Exhibit To Open.” Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (4 May 1975): 72.

“Mixed Media Exhibit.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (4 May 1975): 7C.
“UNLV Offers Classes In Continuing Education.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (30 August 1975): 12.
“Wall Mural Gift.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (18 November 1976): 31.
“Plexiglass Mural For Hospital.” Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (21 November 1976): 2C.
Rita Deanin Abbey. Interview by Angela Berlingeri, March 1977. Alumni Research Project, California College of Arts and Crafts, Oakland, California
Doughty, Nanelia S. “Rita Deanin Abbey’s Spirit of Place.” The Nevadan–Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (3 April 1977): 4–5.
Adams, Charles. Western American Literature. Vol. XII, No. 3, “Review of Rivertrip” (1977): 247.
Adams, Charles. “Echoes from the Archives.” The Nevadan–Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (27 March 1977): 24.
“Watercolors and Drawings to be Displayed at UNLV.” Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (30 March 1977): 28.
“Expressionistic Paintings.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (3 April 1977): 6C.
Donovan, Nadine. “One Woman’s Chronicle.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (20 April 1977).

‘Y’ Secured Gallery To Display ‘Rivertrip’.” The Herald (Provo, UT) (31 July 1977): 41.

“Artist’s ‘Rivertrip’ To Be Shown.” The Daily Universe (Provo, UT) (2 August 1977): 5.
“Rivertrip Tells of Colorado River Trip.” Boulder City News, (Boulder City, NV) (26 May 1977).
Peterson, Don H. “Rita Deanin Abbey, Foreword by Frank Waters.” Colorado Gazette Telegraph (Colorado Spring, CO) (4 June 1977).
Gehm, Katherine. “Rivertrip.” Echoes From The Archive, The Nevadan–Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (31 July 1977).
“UNLV Gallery Hosts Colorist Exhibit.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (8 October 1977): 10.
“New Directions Featured in Painting Exhibit.” Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (9 October 1977) 4C.
DeFrange, Anne. “Art Holds Float Trip.” Showcase, The Sunday Oklahoman, (28 May 1978): 20.

“Art Round-Up, Winners Named.” Las Vegas Sun  (Las Vegas, NV) (27 October 1978): 16.

Kelly, Jeff. “Paintings Depict ‘Rivertrip’.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (3 December 1978).
Valder, Ann. “Saturday Salute To Women.” Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (7 November 1979): 7C.
Desert Space. Palm Springs, CA: Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum) 1979: 1–21.
“UNLV Professor To Exhibit Art Works.” Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (16 December 1979): 2L.
“Paintings of Desert Life–UNLV Professor Showing in Palm Springs.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (30 December 1979): 5C.
“Desert Space.” The Valley Times, (Las Vegas, NV) (31 December 1979): A9.
Abbey Work on Display.” The Valley Times, (Las Vegas, NV) (21 March 1980).

“Acrylics.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (30 March 1980): 3B.

“Art Exhibit.” Las Vegas Review-Journal, (Las Vegas, NV) (30 March 1980): 1A.
Hopkins, A. D. “Rita Deanin Abbey: An Artistic Success.” The Nevadan–Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (3 May 1981): 9J.

“Clark Gallery to Show Nevada Artist’s Paintings.” Evening Gazette (Worcester MA) (28 September 1982): 7.

“Desert Vistas Exhibited.” Fitchburg-Leominster Sentinel and Enterprise (Fitchburg, MA) (29 September 1982): 26.
Trainor, Mary “Abbey: Just Deserts.” Worcester Magazine (Worcester, MA) (13 October 1982): 40.
Compton, Bruce. “Unique Artist Rita Deanin Abbey Showcased at Little Center.” The Scarlet (Worcester, MA) (21 October 1982): 17, 20.
From Desert to Bible Vistas. Worcester, MA: Clark University, 1982: 1–20.
The Nevada Contemporary. Reno, NV: Sierra Nevada Museum of Art, 1982: 6.
The World Who’s Who of Women, 1982.
Cambridge, England: International Biographical Center, 1982: 1.
“UNLV Prof’s ‘Rivertrip’ Makes New York City Debut in June.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (22 May 1983): 9A.
“UNLV Art Professor’s Multi-media Show Debuts in NY.” The Nevadan–Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (29 May 1983): 9L.
“Desert, Bible Vistas to be Exhibited at UNLV.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (11 March 1984): 9K.
“UNLV Fine Arts Gallery to Host One-Women Show.” Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV)(15 March 1984): 11C.
“Desert Vistas.” Inside Out–A Faculty/Staff/Alumni Publication of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (Las Vegas, NV) (March 1984).
Cutts, Chris. “Critic Critiques Alta Ham Gallery Exhibit.” The Yellin’ Rebel (Las Vegas, NV) (27 March 1984): 2.
“Abbey Shows Her Acrylics.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (1 April 1984): 10K.
Encore, Sierra Arts Foundation 17, no. 6 (Reno, NV) (17 September 1984): 5.
Kelley, Jeff. Artweek 15, no. 32 (29 September 1984): 4.
“Looking At Link in Religion, Art.” The Nevadan–Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (31 January 1985): 9L.
“Purcell, Abbey Explain Work.” The Nevadan–Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (3 February 1985): 9L.
“Jewish Art Discussed.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (10 March 1985): 7K.
Who are the Women of Las Vegas? Las Vegas, NV: Who Are They Publishing Co., 1985: 1.
“UNLV Art Faculty Puts Own Works on Exhibit.” The Nevadan–Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (29 September 1985): 9L.
“Abbey’s Enamel.” The Nevadan–Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (27 October 1985): 9L.
Gaffey, Cynthia. “A Seed Comes to Flower.” Arts Alive–The Southern Nevada Magazine of the Arts 5, no. 6 (Las Vegas, NV)(November/December 1985): 16–17.
“Shows and Enamelist News.” Enamel Guild: West Newsletter (Seattle, WA) (Winter 1985).
“Governor’s Art Awards.” Neon: Newsletter of the Nevada State Council on the Arts (Reno, NV) (Winter/Spring 1986).
“Nevada's Artists Honored at Governor's Awards Gala.” Las Vegas Review-Journal, (Las Vegas, NV) (17 February 1986): 3D.

“Las Vegas Winners Mark State of Arts.” Las Vegan Magazine, (Las Vegas, NV) (March 1986): 36.

Encore, Sierra Arts Foundation 17, no. 6 (Reno, NV) (March 1986): 4.
“Governor’s Art Awards.” Arts Alive–The Southern Nevada Magazine of the Arts 6, no. 2 (Las Vegas, NV) (March/April 1986): 22–23.
Double Vision: Science and Art Combine Forces to See Desert in New Perspective.” The Nevadan–Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (27 April 1986): 9CC.
“Photos, Abstracts Show an Arid Environment.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (27 April 1986): 7AA.
Skea, Dan. “Magic of the Desert.” The Nevadan– Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (4 May 1986): 9CC.
“Art Meets Science in the Desert.” Arts Alive–The Southern Nevada Magazine of the Arts 6, no. 3 (Las Vegas, NV) (May/June 1986): 23.
“UNLV Faculty Shows Artwork.” The Nevadan– Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (31 August 1986): 9CC.
Fox, Mitch (producer) Real to Reel: Expressions Part 1. Ernie Ohlson, director; KLVX–TV, Channel 10, Las Vegas, NV, 1986.
Sierra Nevada Museum Biennial. Reno, NV: Sierra Nevada Museum of Art, 1986: 6–7
Premier Biennale Internationale d’Email Laval 1986. Laval, Quebec, Canada: Les Biennales de Laval Inc, 1986: 106.
Email International 2 Catalogue. Coburg, West Germany: Kunstverein Coburg, 1986: 167.
Wick, Robert L. “Art In Geology: Expressive Aspects of the Desert.” Colorado Libraries Magazine (March 1987): 28.
Glass on Metal (Newport, KY) 6, no. 4 (1987): 56.
’87 International Exhibition of Enamelling Art in Japan, Tokyo, Japan: Ueno Royal Museum, 1987: 32.
Harris Knudson Memorial Exhibit. Las Vegas, NV: Museum of Natural History, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, 1987: 5.
Tobisch, Othmar. Review of “Art and Geology: Expressive Aspects of the Desert,” by Rita Deanin Abbey and G. William Fiero. Leonardo 20, no. 3 (1987): 285–286.

“Art Exhibit Inspired by Solar Home.” Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (27 December 1987).

Berk, Lynn. “Rita Deanin Abbey's Desert Song.”
Scene–Las Vegas Sun 1, no. 36 (Las Vegas, NV) (3 January 1988): 8–9.
Mortati, Patricia. “Rita Deanin Abbey: Architectural Drawings.” Arts Alive–The Southern Nevada Magazine of the Arts 8, no. 1 (Las Vegas, NV) (January/February 1988): 20.
“Abbey Art on Display at Museum.” Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (14 February 1988).
“Abbey Exhibit Set…” Henderson Home News, (Henderson, NV) Boulder City News (Boulder City, NV) (18 February 1988)
DiBella, Suszan. “Rita Deanin Abbey Exhibit”, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Rebel Athletic Publications, Vol. 26 no. 6, (Las Vegas, NV) (18, 20 February 1988): 120.
“Palm Springs.” Art Now/U.S.A., National Art Museum, and Gallery Guide Vol. 7, no. 7 (Scotch Plains, NJ) (March 1988): CA 17.
Gaffey, Cynthia. “Rita Deanin Abbey: A Retrospective.” Arts Alive–The Southern Nevada Magazine of the Arts 8, no. 2 (Las Vegas, NV) (March/April 1988): 25.
The Enamelist Society Juried Exhibition. Newport, KY, Glass on Metal Vol. 7, No. 2 (April 1988): 35.
Aiken, Pat. The Vitreous Voice, Vol. III, No. 2 (April 1988): 9.
Skea, Dan. “Rita Deanin Abbey, 35 Years of Integrity.” Arts Alive–The Southern Nevada Magazine of the Arts 8, no. 3 (Las Vegas, NV) (May/June 1988): 24–25.
Hough, Katherine Plake. Rita Deanin Abbey 35 Year Retrospective. Palm Springs, CA: Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum) 1988: 1–64.
Herman, Lloyd E. Color and Image: Recent American Enamels. Hamilton, NY: Gallery Association of New York State, 1989: 32–33.
Esteve, Rosa Codina. “L' Esmalt Dins El Context Arquitectonic.” L'Esmalt Esmalt al foc sobre metall, segona epoca, no. 2 (March 1989): 5–7.
Evans, Ingrid. “Abstract Expressionism colors the desert.” Arts-Reno Gazette-Journal (Reno, NV) (14 May 1989): 3C– 4C.
Evans, Ingrid. “Rita Deanin Abbey: Albuquerque Revisited.” Artweek 15, no. 21 (27 May 1989): 7.
Boll, Deborah. Walch, Peter. Wilson, Malin. Albuquerque ’50s. Albuquerque, New Mexico: University of New Mexico Art Museum, 1989: 7–9, 13–14, 17, 22–23, 43, 46.
The Enamelist Society Juried Exhibition. Newport, KY, Glass on Metal Vol. 8, No. 4 (August 1989): 76.
Clark, William. “Albuquerque ‘50’s– Post War Vibrancy Influenced Arts Scene.” The Arts–Albuquerque Journal (Albuquerque, NM) (22 September 1989): C1, C10.
Krantz, Les. The California Art Review: An Illustrated Survey Of The State’s Museums, Galleries and Leading Artists. Chicago, IL: American References, Inc., 1989: G #117, 94, 138, 139, 184.

“A Box Of Views.” Compact disc and cassette formats, Sierra Wind Quintet, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV. Cambria Records, and Publishing, (Lomita, CA). (1990): cover reproduction of “Dead Sea Scrolls”

Nevada Biennial 90. Las Vegas and Reno, NV: The Nevada State Museum and Historical Society; Nevada Museum of Art (E.L. Wiegand Museum). 1990: 5.
At The Light’s Edge. Las Vegas, NV Art Department Faculty Exhibition, Un. of Nevada, Las Vegas, 1990: 6–7.
Wall Enamel: Painting with Glass. Louisville, KY: Liberty Gallery, Liberty National Bank, 1990: 14.
Attwood, Mark. Another Day in Paradise. Albuquerque, NM: 1990: 32.
Chiarmonte, Paula. Women Artists in the United States: A selected bibliography and resource guide on the fine and decorative arts, 1750–1986. Boston, MA: Reference Publications in Art History, G. K. Hall & Co. 1990: #'s 1357-1361, 471-472.
Pristin, Terry. “Desert Bloom: Beneath The Glitter, The Arts.” Los Angeles Times, Calendar (Los Angeles, CA) (21 April, 1991): 80.
Michaelides, Panicos E., Someroski, Mel, Tudor, Jean. “Enamelist Society Juried Exhibition.” Glass On Metal 10, no. 4 (August 1991): 203.
Jacobs, Jr., Lou. Available Light Photography. New York, NY: Watson-Guptill Publications, 1991: 109.
Nishide, Daizo. ’91 International Exhibition of Enamelling Art in Japan. Tokyo, Japan: Ueno Royal Museum, 1991: 27.
White, Ken. “Paintings Inspire Music for Nevada Symphony.” Las Vegas Review-Journal, (Las Vegas, NV) (6 March 1992): 2C, 6C.
“Nevada Symphony Orchestra.” Piano Concerto No. 1, University of Las Vegas, Artemus Ham Concert Hall, Las Vegas, NV, (1991–1992 Season Program Catalog) (8 March 1992): 23, 27.
Skea, Dan. “Rita Abbey’s Unwavering Commitment.” Las Vegas Weekly – Prototype Issue (Las Vegas, NV) (April 1992): 17.
Neon-Artcetera from the Nevada State Council on the Arts, (Reno, NV) (Fall/Winter 1992): 1.
MAPS V, Palm Springs, CA, Women’s Committee of the Palm Springs Desert Museum, (presently Palm Springs Art Museum) 27 February 1993: 75.
“Another View.” Compact disc and cassette formats, Sierra Wind Quintet, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV. Cambria Records, and Publishing, (Lomita, CA). (1993): cover design & reproduction of “Elements” by Rita Deanin Abbey.
Neon-Artcetera from the Nevada State Council on the Arts, (Reno, NV) (Spring/Summer 1993): 8.
Dynamic Limitations, The Fourth International Enamelist Society Juried Exhibition, Newport, KY, Glass on Metal, 12, no. 4 (August 1993): 74.
The 27th International Enamelling Exhibition in Japan. Tokyo, Japan: Ueno Royal Museum, 1993: 14.
Art-In, On & Out of the Bag, Nevada Institute for Contemporary Art, Las Vegas, NV (August 5–September 17, 1993): 5.
Watson, Fran. “Review: “Dynamic Limitations” Successfully Challenges the Limits.” Art Academy News of Cincinnati, 12, no. 8 (Cincinnati, OH) (Fall 1993): 11.
“Library District Unveils “Spirit Tower.” Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (7 December 1993): 3C.
Lowell, Joe.“ ‘Spirit Tower’ Makes Residents’ Imaginations Soar Over Meaning.” Las Vegas Review-Journal/Northwest View 1, no.7 (Las Vegas, NV) (21 December 1993): 20AA.
“Spirit Tower Sculpture Dedicated.” Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (2 January 1994): 1L, 6L.
“The Wheel.” Las Vegas Rotary, Rita Deanin Abbey Lecture, (24 February 1994): 1-2
“Summerlin Library and Performing Arts Center Promotes Creativity.” Today In The Northwest (Las Vegas NV) (January 1993): 3.
Adler, Nat. “Steel Spirit.” Las Vegas Sun/Accent (Las Vegas, NV) (4 January 1994): 1D, 6D.
Nevada Symphony, Sound Trek Series, Summerlin Performing Art Theater, (February 26, 1994): 3-4.
Las Vegas, U. S. A! Nevada Institute for Contemporary Art, Las Vegas, NV (July 28-September 14, 1994): 5.
Nevada Institute for Contemporary Art, Ninth Exhibition Season Brochure, Las Vegas, NV Cover Reproduction, NICA 9 (1995).
Crosby, Gregory. Scope 4, Issue 1 (Las Vegas, NV) (April 1995): 12.
Israel Independence Day Celebration ‘95/Poster, Jewish Federation of Las Vegas & Jewish Community Center of Southern Nevada, Sands Hotel, Las Vegas, NV.
Third International Enamel Art Exhibition (Email 3) Kunstverein Coburg e. V., Coburg, Germany (Ausstellung vom 17. Juni bis 20. August 1995): Vereinigte Staaten von Amerika: 167.
Enamel Today (Email Heute), Villa am Aabach, Unter dem Patronat dem Kunstkommission der Stadt Uster, CH-Uster, Switzerland (24.6.-23.7. 1995): 10-11.
Meiste, Marlene. “Neun Kunstlerinnen und Kunstler stellen in Uster aus, Email als faszinierender Werkstoff.” Der Zurcher Oberlauder, (Uster, Switzerland) (27 June 1995).
Nevada Institute for Contemporary Art Third Annual Invitational Exhibition, Las Vegas, NV (July 20-September 22, 1995): 7.
Fifth Int’l. Enamelist Society Juried Exhibition, Charles Taylor Arts Center, Hampton, VA; D’Art Center, Norfolk, VA, and Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, Glass on Metal Vol. 14, No. 4 (August 1995): 75.

“Abbey’s Art on Display at UNLV.” The Jewish Reporter XX, Issue 17 (Las Vegas, NV) (25 August 1995): 4.

The Vitreous Voice, 9, no. 4 (September 1995): 5, 8.
Cling, Carol. “Box Art Project and Auction Raise Funds for The Nevada Institute for Contemporary Art.” Las Vegas Review-Journal, (Las Vegas, NV) (4 September 1995): 1C, 5C.
University of Nevada Las Vegas, Dept. of Art Faculty, 1995-1997 Brochure, Las Vegas, NV(1995): 5.
Crosby, Gregory. Scope 4, Issue 6 “Professor’s Guide to Kulchur.” (Las Vegas, NV) (September 1995): 21.
The 1995 International Exhibition of Enamelling Art in Japan, Ueno Royal Museum, Tokyo, Japan (September 24-30, 1995): 13.
Nevada Business Journal. “Master Planned Communities, Builders with a Plan.” (Las Vegas, NV) 10, no. 9 (October 1995): 12.
Walsh, Mimi. “Invitational Enamel Exhibition In Switzerland.” Glass on Metal, 14, no. 5 (Newport, KY) (October 1995): 103.
Crosby, Gregory. Scope Vol. 5, Issue 2 “Professor’s Guide to Kulchur.” (Las Vegas, NV) (May 1996): 12.
Rosenberg, Donald, “Interesting World Premiers Are Featured in Season Finale.” The Plain Dealer, (Cleveland, OH) (8 May 1996): 6E.

“Cleveland Chamber Symphony.” Piano Concerto No. 1, Drinko Recital Hall/Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH, (9 May 1996): 6.

“New Music Festival of Sandusky.” Piano Concerto No. 1, Sandusky High School Auditorium, Sandusky, OH,(9-11 May 1996): 10-11.
Interim, Volume Fifteen, Number Two, Department of English, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV, cover reproduction of “Crystal Forest, A-94.” (Fall/Winter 1996-97).
9th International Exhibition of Enamelling Art in Japan, sponsored by The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The Agency for Cultural Affairs, Metropolis of Tokyo. Musashino City Hall, Musashino-shi, Tokyo, Japan (September 24-30, 1996): 33.
University of Washington Press Catalog, Seattle, Washington, (Spring/Summer 1997): 22.
“Rita Deanin Abbey Rio Grande Series.” Las Vegas, NV: Gan Or.
Interim, Volume Sixteen, Number One, Department of English, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV, cover reproduction of “Undertones, A-86.” (Spring/Summer 1997).
Witt, David L. Review of “Rita Deanin Abbey, Rio Grande Series.” Book Talk, (July 1997): 7.
The Enamelist Society, Newport, KY, Glass on Metal, Vol. 16, No. 3 (August 1997): back cover reproduction “Land Mass, B-6.”
Messier, Gisele. Review of “Rita Deanin Abbey Rio Grande Series.” New Mexico Magazine, Vol. 75, No. 9 (September 1997): 9.

“Book features ‘Rio Grande’ artwork of UNLV’s Abbey.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (3 September 1997).

Russell, Diane. “UNLV Artist's Work Featured in New Book.” Update, Vol. 26, No 28, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, (Las Vegas, NV) (8 September 1997): 1.
Baker, Chuck N., Scope, Vol. 6, No. 13 (Las Vegas, NV) Oct. 11-24, 1997): 7.
Tradition & Transformation: Enamels 97. Sixth International Enamelist Society Invitational and Juried Exhibitions: Newport, KY; East Carolina University, 1997: 42.
Tanaka, Terukazu. “The 31st International Enamelling Art Exhibition in Japan.” Tokyo, Japan: Ueno Royal Museum, 1997: 23.
Rita Deanin Abbey: Rio Grande Series, Artbibliographies, Vol. 28, No. 1, Oxford, England, 1997: 00013.
“UNLV artist featured in new artwork book.” The Rebel Yell, Vol. 21, No. 3, University of Nevada, Las Vegas (Las Vegas, NV) (2 September 1997): 2.
Holocaust Exhibition Program, Las Vegas Art Museum, Las Vegas, NV, 1998: 2.
Western Americana, Five Quail Books-West, (Phoenix Arizona) Listing for "Rivertrip" (Summer 1998): 1.
“Inview: Rita Deanin Abbey.” Glass on Metal, Vol. 17, no. 4 (October 1998): 76–79.
University of Nevada Press Catalog, Reno, Nevada (Spring/Summer 1999): 15. Color reproduction of "Nenana River, Denali, A-37."
Fox, William L., Mapping the Empty, Eight Artists and Nevada. Reno and Las Vegas, NV: University of Nevada Press, 1999: 28–48.
The 33rd International Enamelling Art Exhibition in Japan, Tokyo, Japan, Ueno Royal Museum, 1999: 22.
Hare, David. “Holy Images, Religious art, icons, and relics in Southern Nevada.” Henderson Home News, Panorama, HBC Publication, Inc. (Henderson, NV) (9 March 2000): 1, 7.
Clayton, Alec. “Visual Edge, Beautiful Kitsch.” Fort Lewis Ranger, (Tacoma, WA) (14 September 2000): Vol. 50, No. 31.
Dedication of Temple Beth Sholom Sanctuary Program, Las Vegas, NV, Temple Beth Sholom, “Rita Deanin Abbey, Isaiah Stained-Glass Windows” (16 windows), 24 September 2000: 9.
Las Vegas Life. “The Vegas 100.” (December 2000): 74.
Nevada, Historical Society Quarterly, Volume 43, No. 4, Linda Graham, “Mapping the Empty, Eight Artists and Nevada.” by William L. Fox, Winter 2000: 398.
Cling, Carol. “Public Display of Art.” Las Vegas, Review-Journal, In-Depth (Las Vegas, NV) (6 May 2001): 33A–35A.
Cohen, Karen L., The Art of Fine Enameling, Sterling Publishing Company. Inc., New York, NY, 2002: 133.
Gardner, Mark L., “The Brave Cowboy.” New Mexico Magazine, (Santa Fe, NM) (June 2002) Vol. 80, No. 6: 24-29.
Witt, David L., Modernists in Taos, Red Crane Books, Santa Fe, NM, 2002: 191-192, 210.
New Book by Member Rita Deanin Abbey, “San Diego Enamel Guild Newsletter.” (San Diego, CA) (July 2003): Vol. 23, Issue 7: 2.
Kohn, Wila–, “Rita Deanin Abbey’s Sixteen Stained-Glass Windows in the Sanctuary at Temple Beth Sholom.” Las Vegas Israelite (Las Vegas, NV) (4 July 2003): Vol. 39, No. 13: 9.
Orzes, Caroline, “New book highlights TBS stained-glass windows.” The Jewish Reporter, (Las Vegas, NV) (8 August 2003): Vol. XXVII, Issue 20: 23.
Goldbart, Gary, “Sukkot Brings Unity.” Las Vegas Israelite (Las Vegas, NV) (10 October 2003): Vol. 39, No. 19: 23-24.
Nevada Public Radio’s Southern Nevada Cultural Guide Listing 2003-2004, Las Vegas, NV: 16.
Abbey, Joshua, “Interview with Rita Deanin Abbey”, (28 November 2003)
Crosby, Gregory, “A Touch of Glass.” Las Vegas Magazine, (Las Vegas, NV) (Nov/Dec 2003): 32.
Cloud, Barbara, “Isaiah Stained-Glass Windows.” UNLV Magazine, (Las Vegas, NV) (Spring 2004): Vol. 12 No. 11: 7, 8.
Playing with Fire: Glass on Metal, San Diego Enamel Guild, Gallery 21, San Diego, California (August 1-14, 2004): 18.
Alba, Benny, “66 Enamels in a California Show.” Glass on Metal (Newport, KY) (February 2005): Volume 24, No. 1: 17.
Art Cue, Bimonthly Events, Las Vegas Celebrates 100 Years, July –August 2005, Las Vegas, NV: 8.
White, Ken, “Materials Girl, Rita Deanin Abbey has worked with virtually every substance known to artists.” Neon, Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, NV) (17 June 2005): 42.
Peterson, Kristen, “Public art comes to life.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (9 October 2005): 10.
“Artist to attend book-signing at studio.” Boulder City News (Boulder City, NV) (8-14 December 2005)

“Original World Class Art…” Las Vegas Israelite (Las Vegas, NV) (13 January 2006): Vol. 42, No. 1: 1-2.

“History of Jewish Women of Las Vegas.” Film Las Vegas Israelite (Las Vegas, NV) (13 January 2006): Vol. 42, No. 1: 3.
McCoy, Duncan R. “Library Corner.” Boulder City Magazine, (Boulder City, NV) (February 2006): 17.
Vitreousity: Visions in Enameling, San Diego Enamel Guild, Gallery 21, San Diego, California, (September 2-14, 2006): 23.
Clockwork, Goddard College Magazine (Winter/Spring 2006): 15.
Fusion: 11th Biennial International Juried Exhibition, Enamel Society, Columbus Cultural Arts Center, Columbus, Ohio, (August 24 – September 30, 2007): 38, Back Cover.
Peterson, Kristen, “Wasteland Studded with Gems.” Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (21 January 2008): 7.
Temple Beth Sholom Bulletin, Las Vegas, NV, reproduction of Isaiah Stained-Glass Windows in the main sanctuary (August 2008).
2008–2009 Calendar United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, December reproduction of the 16 Isaiah Stained-Glass Windows in the sanctuary of Temple Beth Sholom.
Fox, William L., “Rita’s Gift.” Nevada Public Radio’s Desert Companion Magazine (Las Vegas, NV) (Summer 2009): 42–45.
White, Claytee, “History Interview of Rita Deanin Abbey” UNLV Lied Library Oral Research History Center, Las Vegas, NV (26 February 2015)
UNLV Department of Music College of Fine Arts presents NEXTET The New Music Ensemble for the 21st Century, Virko Baley, music director and conductor. Nocturnal No. 7, Introitus (1993; rev. 20013-14) Reflections of the art of Rita Deanin Abbey; Virko Baley, composer, Timothy Hoft, piano (24 March 2015)
Reza, James P., “Ask a Native”, Vegas Seven, Las Vegas, Nevada (11-17 June 2015): 13.
Web References on Abbey, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Art Inventories Catalog, Smithsonian Institution Research Information System (SIRIS), Spirit Tower, 1993, dedicated December 8 (surveyed January 1994)
Smithsonian Art Inventory Sculptures on waymarking.com, Spirit Tower, 1993
Ask Art (askart.com), “The Artists’ Bluebook” Worldwide Edition, (Book References, Biography, Quick Facts & Keywords for Rita Deanin Abbey)
Zoominfo (zoominfo.com), Rita Deanin Abbey Web References, (updated March 15, 2006)
International Sculpture Center (ISC), Sculpture Magazine, Online Sculptor Directory: Rita Deanin Abbey
Open Library, Authors’ Search, Rita Deanin Abbey, 5 books, Worldcat Identities, Publications about and by Rita Deanin Abbey, most widely held works.
Online Nevada Encyclopedia (o · n · e), “University of Nevada, Las Vegas: Department of Art”

^ Macrea, John (1996). ed (in Englis). Macmillan. p. 57. ISBN 978-0-8050-3133-1.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
^ Rita Deanin Abbey, interview with author; Las Vegas, NV, June 27, 1987
^ Deanin Abbey, Rita; Fiero, William (1986). Art and Geology: Expressive Aspects of the Desert. Layton, UT: G.M. Smith. pp. 4–5. ISBN 0879052015.
^ Deanin Abbey, Rita; Fiero (1997). Rivertrip. Outing, MN: Northland Press. p. 23. ISBN 0873581520.
^ Ibid
^ Rita Deanin Abbey, paper on "Desert Space Series," Las Vegas, Nevada, 1979.
^ Rita Deanin Abbey, paper on "Computer Drawings," Las Vegas, Nevada, 1984.
^ Rita Deanin Abbey, "Porcelain Enamel Fired on Steel Panels and Hammered Relief Shapes,'' Leonardo 21, no. 2 (forthcoming 1988).
^ Dan Skea, "Magic of the Desert," Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (May 4, 1986): 9cc.
^ Mary Trainor, "Abbey: Just Deserts," Worcester Magazine (Worcester, MA) (October 13,1982): 40.

[1] Macrea, John (1996). ed (in Englis). Macmillan. p. 57. ISBN 978-0-8050-3133-1.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)

[2] Rita Deanin Abbey, interview with author; Las Vegas, NV, June 27, 1987

[3] Deanin Abbey, Rita; Fiero, William (1986). Art and Geology: Expressive Aspects of the Desert. Layton, UT: G.M. Smith. pp. 4–5. ISBN 0879052015.

[4] Deanin Abbey, Rita; Fiero (1997). Rivertrip. Outing, MN: Northland Press. p. 23. ISBN 0873581520.

[5] Ibid

[6] Rita Deanin Abbey, paper on "Desert Space Series," Las Vegas, Nevada, 1979.

[7] Rita Deanin Abbey, paper on "Computer Drawings," Las Vegas, Nevada, 1984.

[8] Rita Deanin Abbey, "Porcelain Enamel Fired on Steel Panels and Hammered Relief Shapes,'' Leonardo 21, no. 2 (forthcoming 1988).

[9] Dan Skea, "Magic of the Desert," Las Vegas Sun (Las Vegas, NV) (May 4, 1986): 9cc.

[10] Mary Trainor, "Abbey: Just Deserts," Worcester Magazine (Worcester, MA) (October 13,1982): 40.

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