David Rite’s Inspiring Artisans

Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (Leonardo, son of ser Piero from Vinci), known as Leonardo da Vinci, born in the 1400’s near Vinci. He was educated in Florence by the Italian painter and sculptor Andrea del Verrocchio. Leonardo was a painter, draftsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. He kept detailed drawings and notes on a variety of subjects, including anatomy, astronomy, botany, cartography, painting, and paleontology. Though to David, Leonardo, was the “Superior Artist and Master Draftsman” in every respect of the phrase. 

Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni known simply as Michelangelo. He is one of the best-documented artists of the 16th century. He was born in the Republic of Florence. He became a magnificent sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Michelangelo’s work had a major influence on the development to the Renaissance concepts of humanism and naturalism. He is often considered a contender for the title of the archetypal Renaissance man, but to David he was the Renaissance Man.

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio better known as Caravaggio. He was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. His paintings combined a realistic observation of the human state, both physical and emotional, with a dramatic use of lighting, which had a formative influence on Baroque painting. What made Caravaggio stand out from the rest was the dramatic technique he employed, the use of chiaroscuro, that later came to be known as tenebrism or the stylistic element contrasting bright light and darkening shadows. To David, due to Caravaggio’s eye-catching technique, his subjects became almost alive to the viewer and that’s what Caravaggio was all about. 

Jacob (Jacques) Jordaens was a Flemish painter in the 1600s. He was a draftsman and tapestry designer known for his history paintings, genre scenes, and portraits. After Peter Paul Rubens, he was the leading Flemish Baroque painter of his day. He also was seen as one of the leading tapestry designers of the era. He was a portrait painter and excelled in representations of the base character of humanity. He painted altarpieces, mythological, and allegorical scenes. Jordaens weaved his way into the heart of David. To David he was like Peter Paul Rubens who captured audiences throughout history and created benevolence, reverence, with a cascade of emotion of life within their paintings.

Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn was truly an innovative and prolific master in artistic media. He is generally considered one of the greatest visual artists in history and more importantly in Dutch art history. Unlike most Dutch masters of the 17th century, his works depict a wide range of style and subject matter. Ranging from portraits, self-portraits, landscapes, genre scenes, allegorical scenes, historical scenes, biblical, and mythological themes as well as animal studies. His contributions to art came in a period of great wealth and cultural achievement that historians call the Dutch Golden Age. To David, Rembrandt was a real Master Artisan. 

William-Adolphe Bouguereau, was born in La Rochelle, France in 1825, into a family of wine and olive oil merchants. He became known as a French academic painter. His realistic genre of paintings used mythological themes and made a modern interpretation of classical subjects. Bouguereau emphasized the female body with beauty, grace, and reverence which elevated the human figure with supreme dignity. David believes that Bouguereau was gifted in encompassing the innocents, grace, and beauty of humankind. His art is an inspiration to all who look upon his paintings.

John William Waterhouse Born in Rome in 1849 to English parents who were both painters. Waterhouse later moved to London where he enrolled in the Royal Academy of Art. He was known for working first in the Academic style and then for embracing the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood's style and subject matter. His artworks were known for their depictions of women from both ancient Greek mythology and Arthurian legend. Many of his paintings are based on famous authors works such as Homer, Ovid, Shakespeare, Tennyson, and Keats. David believes that Waterhouse depicts intrigue, grace, and allure within his paintings. It’s easy to see his love of art in each of his paint strokes. 

Norman Percevel Rockwell better known as Norman Rockwell was born in 1894 in New York, USA. He was an American painter and illustrator. His works have a broad popular appeal for their reflection of the Classic Golden Era of American culture. For over five decades, Rockwell was known for his cover illustrations of American everyday life that he created for the Saturday Evening Post magazine. Rockwell once said, "I paint life as I would like it to be." Rockwell was famously known as an illustrator, but what an illustrator he was! David thinks his art embodies a distinctive American style of innocence. When reminiscing about Norman’s art David has said, “if it (art) says one thing, then that is an “okay” art piece. But if it says two things then that is a “great masterpiece” waiting to be realized. Where Norman’s art is concerned, his art has always said two or more things!” 

Boris Vallejo was born in 1941 in Lima, Peru. He is a Peruvian-American painter who works in the science fiction, fantasy, and erotica genres. His paintings have appeared on the covers of numerous science fiction and fantasy fiction novels. Vallejo’s depiction of the human body is dramatic and overwhelmingly vivid, and his realism is undeniable. David sees Vallejo’s art as a gateway to another world. His use of lighting, textures, and the human form is otherworldly. The way that he captivates his viewers is truly extraordinary. He is a Master of Art in this age.

Abraham Nussbaum was born in Vienna in the early 1900’s. He was an artist and poet. He and his sweetheart (later his wife) were driven from their home and were forced into Nazi labor camps during the Nazi occupation of Europe. They were liberated by the Russian’s advance and fled into France until the end of World War II. Before coming to the United States, he studied art throughout all of Europe. While in the US he started an elite art school in California. He then later published a limited-edition book entitled “The Many moods of Abraham N”. David has collected the last authenticated book ever printed by Abraham Nussbaum. As an art instructor Nussbaum took very few students. Nussbaum was a teacher to David Rite’s mentor, John David Sr. For David Rite, without Nussbaum there could have been no Rite way to art.

John David Sr. was born in Sacramento, California right after World War II. He studied art, history, philosophy, and religion. However, his first love was art. John came from an accomplished musical family, however he found peace and excitement through the expression of the visual arts. 

One spring morning John was walking hand in hand with his young wife, downtown in the bustling city of Sacramento, where he found a portrait hanging in a window of a small shop. John decided to inquire about the artist of the painting. John discovered from the shop owner that it was from a local artist, Abe Nussbaum. Remembering that ‘fortune favors the bold’, John tracked Nussbaum down and had a fortunate meeting with Mr. Nussbaum at his residence. John discovered that Nussbaum taught art only to an exclusive select few. John studied under Nussbaum’s tutelage mastering the art of drawing and painting in the classical style. They became friends, and to John, he affectionally called him, Abe. Since then, John himself went onto teach and instruct the classical visual arts. 

One of the greatest lessons he taught [David] was; With each new day, it is like a blank new canvas, with endless possibilities and endless adventures waiting for discovery and all it takes is for you to start painting. John called this type of mindset the ‘joy of painting’. He encouraged painting new beginnings, painting a new future, and therefore painting a new destiny. He said, when the going gets tough… the tough gets painting! He went on to say, "that through great adversity brings forth the greatest rewards - always be in the right, and when you're right, give 'em hell". These axioms kept David painting when times were tough, kept fighting when all seemed lost, and encouraged David to keep on teaching – 'for even this hard time shall pass'. David now teaches and instructs to give hope through new discoveries around each corner and on each canvas. This was all made possible because of John’s mindset and his teachings of the joy of painting. 

John has several paintings and portraits displayed all over the U.S and is now retired enjoying his children and grandchildren and holding onto the hope of leaving this world a bit more beautiful, lively, and sweeter than he found it. 

David Elijah Rite was born in Sacramento, California. Mr. Rite followed John David Sr’s path as he too studied art, philosophy, and religion. David became friends with John over a lifetime of shared experiences in learning, growth through hardships, feeling delighted through compassion and giving, the pleasure of studying art, and the humanities. David was privileged to study under John and was able to capture all his methods. David distilled this information from John into a teachable, duplicatable, and easy to understand system. From humble beginnings to the highest honors, people from all walks of life have succeeded due to following correct principles Mr. Rite teaches. David has always expressed his love through his artistic creations. He instructs the Rite Team and says, "Sow the right thoughts, and you reap noble acts; sow good actions, and you reap good habits; sow noble habits, and you reap a noble character; sow a good character, and you reap a great destiny". This can be related to painting as well. David teaches his art students this axiom with his own artistic flair. “Sow inspired thoughts, and you reap original acts; sow creative actions, and you reap imaginative habits; sow innovative habits, and you reap an inventive disposition; sow a beautiful nature, and you reap a great artistic creative destiny".

David is open and uses his life experiences to communicate through his art. This style shapes how he conveys his thoughts and desires in his art. He has always said, “There is no stupid questions. The only stupid question is the one not asked. Art should provoke the viewer or audience to ask questions. To get involved in the storytelling of the art piece. So thusly, you should be asking the questions as you create your [life] story and paint.” Knowing a little about Mr. Rite will give [you] an advantage to ask the right questions to get the right responses.

Mr. Rite’s painting style is situated in a figurative tradition that goes back to the Romantic movement. Through a classic romanticist pictorial approach and timeless techniques, David takes a realism approach of people and seamlessly mixes realism with fantasy for magnificent realistic compositions. He intertwines the imaginary into the real world as he explores the adventure and mystery of our existence. David uses mythological themes, making modern interpretations of classical subjects, with an emphasis on the human body. At times Mr. Rite emphasizes innocents, nature, symbolism, transcendentalism, eroticism, and individualism. David weaves masterful creations through existentialist philosophy that embraces imagination, emotion, and the unknown which invites the viewer to reflect on the very foundations of human perception and understanding. His renderings reflect an interest in human psychology, expression of personal feelings and the interests in the natural world and beyond. David seeks to create powerful images that resonate in the imagination of the viewer and thusly thrusts them to transcend this reality. To sum up – In four words; Realism collides with fantasy.

For David, John David Sr. and all the other artisans who have given their works to humanity have enabled the Rite artistic system of correct exacting principles possible. Many master artisans have shown us that by using exacting principles that anything is possible. For it only seems impossible, until somebody does it. The splendor and essence captured in the artist’s works, mentioned on this page, are the driving force for David to teach the Rite Techniques. Other classical painters, photographers, and artisans that are holding onto the realistic natural beauty of life is what fuels the spirit of humankind, and to David, that is what ART is all about.