About Rita

Rita Botelho is an Azorean born, Toronto raised abstract expressionist artist.

Growing up in a hard-working immigrant family helped Rita learn the value of an education. Starting in the practical field of business studies, Rita changed her educational path a year later, with the encouragement of family, to pursue a passion for art and design. 

After completing a diploma in graphic design at Seneca College, and courses at the Ontario College of Art, Rita worked first in corporate design and later in advertising as Art Director in Publishing for Rogers Communications. 

In 2005 she dedicated herself to her son’s upbringing. It was only when he became a teenager that Rita found time to pursue further studies in the arts. She enrolled in classes at the Avenue Road Art School and the ArteMbassy where Rita was able to renew her passion and find a voice to her artistic expression.

Inspiration for Rita’s abstract artwork comes from a combination of Azorean family roots, a love of running, friends, Collingwood in the winter months and the Kawartha Highlands in the summer where she spends much of her time contemplating the beautiful natural world around her.