Page 6 - Rita Asfour 2016 Coffee Table Book_Neat

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CHOICES---AND THE COURAGE TO MAKE THEM

“Oh life is like a maze of doors and they all open from the side you’re on”
(Cat Stevens, Sitting - from his Album Catch Bull at Four, 1972)

“The Gift”

By the time Rita Thomassian was 7 or 8 years of age, she felt the presence and power of the gift of being
an artist growing deep within her. Born in Cairo, Egypt, to an Armenian father and a Syrian mother,
Rita was fortunate to have two parents who nurtured “the gift” budding within their young daughter.
Her early education was received first at the French Délivrande Catholic Nun’s School and then fol-
lowed by intense aesthetic study at the Lycée Français---both schools located in Cairo and instruction
delivered by French teachers and nuns.

Early photographs of the young Rita Thomassian attest to a powerful sense of observation welling up

in the eyes of this young girl. Family and friends recognized Rita possessed a powerful gaze. They
discerned in her countenance that Rita was being visibly moved and inspired by the “artistic light” that
she was not only seeing but also absorbing. Rita completed her formal education as a painter at Cairo’s
Leonardo da Vinci Academy of Fine Arts where she received, in 1960, a BA degree in Fine Arts. There,
instruction was delivered with a strong Western European emphasis predominately by ex-patriot Ital-
ian artists as teachers/mentors.

“Finishing” Her Education

For centuries artists have “finished” their education by traveling in order to examine the work of mas-
ters who came before them! Following the conclusion of her formal education in Cairo, Rita traveled
extensively in Western Europe with purposeful time spent in Germany and Italy as well as exploring
professional opportunities in Beirut, Lebanon (opportunity to illustrate book and magazine covers).

“I Feel The Power Growing”
After five years doing illustration work in Beirut, Rita decided to immigrate to the United States. In
May of 1965, Rita arrived in Southern California and very quickly landed a job, based on her impres-
sive portfolio, as a portrait artist at Universal Studios in Hollywood/Studio City. Rita’s first American
artistic endeavors were channeled through her four years at Universal Studios (1965-68). She embraced

the Southern California life style and her palette revealed the power of its color. Rita was won over and

Rita Asfour Self-Portrait, Circa 1990