To Los Angeles with Love

7811 Gallery presents To Los Angeles with Love, a new solo exhibition of works from the late artist Dorothy Rice with an opening reception on Thursday, March 6, 6:00 - 8:00 pm. The exhibition is on view March 6 - May 1, 2025,.
Rice was a multi-talented painter, sculptor, model and actor, who had an illustrious career as a top fashion model in the 1940s and 50s, before becoming an exhibiting artist and exploring, throughout the rest of her life and through several different mediums, the breadth and vibrancy of the human experience.
To Los Angeles with Love reflects Rice’s decades-long explorations of community, beauty and place. The exhibition stands as a timely celebration of California, specifically Los Angeles, which she called home for over 50 years. It features oil paintings, silkscreens and watercolors depicting California from the 1970s through the 90s, including iconic landmarks, tranquil natural landscapes, and scenes evocative of a bygone yet recognizable Los Angeles ethos. Though she was born and raised in New York, Rice’s later life as a renowned model married to a Hollywood producer embodied a Los Angeles fantasy which is palpable in her dreamlike paintings. Rice brought what Ray Bradbury—author, native Angeleno, and collector of Rice’s work—described as “fresh eyes and her own palette” to everything from city life to coastal landscapes.
The exhibition also features selections that reflect the international scope of Rice’s work. New York, Israel, Japan, and Mexico all make an appearance, revealing not only Rice’s cosmopolitan life but her profound interest in depicting shared human experiences across cultures and time.
A portion of proceeds will be donated to the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation.
“This exhibition encapsulates Dorothy’s entire personality: the New Yorker who went on to become a celebrated model and actor, the Californian who lived in the Hollywood limelight, the world traveler who created art to connect with the people around her—all of it comes together to reveal an extraordinary woman who captured the world as only she could.” - Deborah Blum, Gallery Director and Curator
Rice created art her entire life, being recognized first by the Art Students League in New York, who invited her to join at the age of 14. During that time, she was “discovered” at the legendary nightclub El Morocco in Manhattan by Vogue photographer John Rawlings, which quickly led to her notable modeling career, rising to widespread acclaim as the face of the culture-defining “New Look” collection from Christian Dior and working with top fashion photographers for years afterward.
She returned to art-making in her 40s, a remarkable shift especially as a woman during the time period. When she transitioned from full-time modeling to painting, she said she was happy to turn the focus away from herself to the world around her. Her paintings allow us to see the world through the eyes of someone who was once a muse, demonstrating an intimate and natural sense of beauty that starkly contrasts with the beauty standards of the fashion industry.
Jonathan Kirsch of The Los Angeles Times wrote that Rice “captured a softer and more romantic aspect of our city than we are accustomed to seeing. There’s an exuberance, almost an innocence to her conception of the cityscape – she has an eye for color and movement and a taste for the quaint.” Army Archerd of Daily Variety wrote: “Beverly Hills never looked lovelier than in Dorothy Rice’s latest [work].”

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