Graphic Designer Puts New Spin on Portraits

Dru Ritger has had a creative eye since age 3. He grew up in an art-loving family, with both his parents and brother immersing themselves in some form of art.

“I’ve been an artist since as far back as I can remember,” Ritger said.

He started with simple drawings and worked his way through multiple mediums, including painting and sculpture. Ritger, who lives in Montvale, prefers to paint portraits. He said it can be therapeutic.

“My favorite thing about art is the way that you can connect and affect other people, and it’s true for all art,” he said. “One of the reasons I paint so many portraits is because as people we have a connection with seeing another human faces and having that eye contact, so it’s serious every time you see a portrait. I love making that connection with the viewer and I find that a powerful image.”

Ritger eventually began working with graphic design, following in his father’s footsteps. Now, this recent graduate of Rutgers University works as a graphic artist in Ramsey at All Things Media. He says he’d like to work up to sell pieces and put on larger shows in the future.

“I honestly would say that the main reason is just the fact that I could make money, or at least consistent money as opposed to trying to sell a piece or have a gallery show,” Ritger said. “I love graphic design but my passion is definitely painting and drawing, creating all different kinds of things.”

He said though he prefers painting, graphic design can be extremely rewarding. Ritger approaches design as a problem to solve.

“When you do art yourself it's more open, with design you’re working with a criteria and you have to act creatively in those bounds,” he explained. “So you get something out of it as well.”

Ritger also uses the computer as a tool for his own personal artwork.

“Graphic design is not for you as an artist at all, so when you do personal work it’s a much different experience,” he said.

Ritger has a group of portraits on display at the Westwood Library this month, titled 17 Years of Portraiture. The main piece, and his senior thesis at Rutgers, is a large digital self-portrait.

“It’s about self-definition as an artist, with Internet, and how you react and handle that experience,” Ritger explained. “The goal was to bridge this modern technology with century-old painting techniques using each image as its own brush stroke and the pixels, and learn about that relationship.”

The other eight pieces are more conventional, beginning with a portrait of Ritger’s father and Ghandi, among others.

You can see Ritger’s graphic design work and painted portraits throughout the month of October at the , 49 Park Ave. The library is open Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Wednesday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.