Sallie Ritter and Kent Jacobs’ Art Collection on Display June 4, 2009

Longtime arts benefactors Sallie Ritter and Dr. Kent Jacobs have loaned a portion of their extensive art collection to the Las Cruces Museum of Art for the current exhibition “Las Cruces Collects.” On display through Saturday, August 22nd, the show offers a rare look into the private art collections of area residents. Come learn the colorful tales behind these objects as well as what motivates a collector to collect.

Dr. Kent Jacobs first met Sallie Ritter after he purchased one of her paintings at an art exhibition. Sallie later used the money from the sale of the painting to purchase his wedding band. The two have been partners in collecting ever since and are always inspired by their travels. Ms. Ritter states that they always, “come home with at least one purchase.”

Sallie Ritter, painter and fifth-generation New Mexican, schooled at the University of Rome, the Edinburgh College of Art, Scotland with a Bachelor of Arts degree from The Colorado College. A veteran of over twenty one-woman exhibitions, her work is included in numerous public and private collections, including the National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, D.C. and the Museum of New Mexico, Santa Fe. Dr. Jacobs is both a dermatologist (retired) and author of five books. He spent two years of his early career in the Public Health Services among the Zuni and Laguna Pueblos where he became fascinated by Native-American art and culture.

Kent Jacobs and Sallie Ritter have bequeathed their home for use as a state art museum for Southern New Mexico. The Museum of New Mexico Board of Regents has established that the facility will be called the New Mexico Museum of Art, Jacobs - Ritter Compound. One highlight from the collection is the lithograph “Reposa” by Mexican artist David Alfaro Siqueiros, well-known for his socialist realist murals. “Charles V Spearing a Bull at Vallodalid,” an original etching by the legendary Spanish artist Francisco de Goya, is also on display.

Exhibition hours are Monday-Friday, 10AM – 4PM, and Saturday, 9AM – 1PM. Admission is free. Funded by the City of Las Cruces, the Las Cruces Museum of Art is located at 491 North Main Street, at the north end of the Downtown Mall. Call 541-2137, or visit http://museums.las-cruces.org, for more information on exhibitions and Studio Program art classes