Artist Profile Mary Alice Orito

Mary Alice Orito, Untitled from EXCESS, 2024, Mixed media.
Artist Statement
Untitled is part of my current month-long one-woman show at Ceres Gallery, 547 W 27th St, NYC entitled EXCESS. Inspiration is based on the decay and fragments of the textural qualities of the costumes for Miss Havisham of Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations. The exhibit is neutral in tone/color which provides a background for the dimensional elements applied to the surface.
Artist Biography
Over the course of my multiple careers, first as a jewelry designer, then as a sportswear/costume designer, a psychotherapist, and now a mixed-media artist, I have been fascinated with craft, illusion, texture, and the tactile and intuitive process of arrangement. Born in Kansas, I came to New York City in 1961 to attend Parsons School of Design. I worked at Margaret Moore’s Jewelry in the West Village, and I had the great privilege of working nightly with Eva Hesse. Upon graduation, I worked first in the garment industry and later worked as a costume designer off-Broadway. I share an Emmy award for costume design for the Public TV show Encyclopedia. In 1988, I decided to return to college to complete my BA and eventually completed my master’s in clinical social work to become a psychotherapist. In 2009, I joined the National Association of Women Artists, Inc. I was a two-term president of the organization. I remain a member of the organization. One of the NAWA members encouraged me in 2019 to join Ceres Gallery in the Chelsea area of New York City. I identify as a paper artist and embrace mixed medium, prints, drawing and collage.