After earning a BFA in Illustration from Rhode Island School of Design in 2001, Joel Schlotterer worked as a freelance illustrator but he eventually shifted his focus to fine art. Since Schlotterer's first solo show in 2005, he has shown in several galleries primarily in Baltimore and Kansas City.
The black and white tile piazzas of Italy inspired the work for which Riley is most famous -- an Op Art succession. Caught in a downpour, she noticed how the appearance of the checkerboard tiles shifted and blurred as the water streamed over them. From that point on, she explored the act of looking.