Kate Ritchie began observing the stars through a telescope with her father in their backyard as a child. The vastness of the night sky filled her with excitement, awe, and curiosity. As her interest in astrology grew, she found deeper meaning within the constellations. The intricacies of the zodiac signs extend beyond the newspaper’s weekly horoscopes. With historical documentation dating as far back as the 5th century BC, many ancient cultures integrated a form of astrology into their belief systems. The Babylonians observed the stars in correspondence to the seasonal movements of the sun, moon, and planets and correlated the twelve zodiac constellations with a season, symbol, figure, planet, and element.

In astrology, the zodiac constellations appear in a fixed ring across the night sky, much like a wheel turning on its axis. The symbol of the wheel occurs across many cultures and religions to represent the passage of time, Earth’s natural cycles, an echo, a ripple, and ultimately The Universe itself. Cosmic Visions celebrates the idea that we are connected to a higher cosmic force that has a divine plan for us all. Ritchie combines printmaking, painting, and collage in this new series that explores the sense of wonder and mystery she feels while gazing up at the night sky.