Ray Bartkus was born in Vilnius, Lithuania. After graduating from Vilnius Art Academy as a printmaker, he began creating lithographs, etchings and pencil drawings, which he exhibited in numerous juried and personal shows in Lithuania, Poland, Germany, France, USA, Canada, among other countries. He also designed the 50 litas bill, which was in the circulation in Lithuania until 2015.

In 1991 he moved with his wife Ina and son Kris to New York City, where he has resided since and where his prints quickly attracted the attention of the New York Times art director and he began what became several decades of work with the New York Times. His illustrations were subsequently featured in the covers and pages of many national and international publications, including the Wall Street Journal, Time, Newsweek, Harper's, Billboard, The Los Angeles Times, Boston Globe, the New Republic, Smart Money, The Fortune, Businessweek, Courrier International. Ray's editorial illustrations have received numerous awards from the Society of Publication Designers, the Society of Newspaper Designers and the Society of Illustrators.

Seeking to expand his creative vision, Ray has begun devoting greater efforts to his own art projects, which include digital art, installations, oil paintings and drawings. In the past decade, Ray has hosted successful personal shows in Vienna (Austria), Warsaw (Poland), Geneva (Switzerland), Wroclaw (Poland), Kiev (Ukraine), Vilnius (Lithuania), Salzburg (Austria), Philadelphia (USA) and New York City, exhibiting entirely new collections of works in each of them.

Ray has also involved himself in organizing collaborations between indie and avant-garde musicians and artists. He has helped create the Independent Drawing Gig, a gathering of international artists and musicians that has previously been held in Vilnius (Lithuania), Skopje (Macedonia), The Hague (The Netherlands), Seoul (South Korea), Istanbul (Turkey) and New York City. Ray also organizes and curates MaLonNY, a yearly gathering of artists, musicians and designers from New York City and London in Marijampole, Lithuania. In addition, he is a yearly participant at the Salzburg Forum, which is organized by International Peace Institute and attended by luminaries from the fields of politics, media and business.


Recent personal shows:

2016     "Bridges" Harmony Park, Lithuania
2015     "The Globe" UN Headquarters, New York City, USA
2015     "Hybrid War" Leopoldskron Palace, Salzburg, Austria
2015     "Storylines" Pearlstein Gallery, Drexel University, Philadelphia, USA
2013     "Last paintings" Neon Gallery, ASP, Wroclaw, Poland
2013     "Balance" Salle des Pas Perdus, UN, Geneva, Switzerland
2013     "Landing Strip", Harmony Park. Lithuania
2013     "Last Paintings" Cukrus klubas, Marijampole, Lithunania
2012     "Last Paintings" Titanikas gallery, Vilnius, Lithuania
2011     "Love/Crash" Luxon gallery, Kiev, Ukraine
2010     "Artscape/Poland" Vartai gallery, Vilnius, Lihuania
2009     "Breaking Point" Zeh gallery, Kiev, Ukraine
2008     "Forgeries", Vartai gallery, Vilnius, Lithuania
2008     "Prints" Kaire/Desine gallery, Vilnius, Lithuania
2007     "News" Vartai Gallery, Vilnius, Lithuania
2006     "Yesterday's News is Tomorrow's Art", Lithuanian Cultural Center in Warsaw, Poland
2005     "Connectivity Power", OSCE, Hofburg Palace, Vienna, Austria


Recent group shows:

2016     "MaLoNY", city-wide contemporary arts festival, Marijampole, Lithuania
2015     "MaLonNY", city-wide contemporary arts festival, Marijampole, Lithuania
2014     "MaLonNY", city-wide contemporary arts festival, Marijampole, Lithuania
2011     "Not there" Convent of St.Cecilia, Brooklyn, USA
2010     "Lithuania.Drawing" LRAL, London, Great Britain
2010     "IDG6" Fluxus Art Ministry, Vilnius, Lithuania
2009     F.R.I.K video meno festivalis, Skopje, Makedonija
2009     ARCO Madrid, Spain
2008     Art For Change, ArtBreak gallery, New York, USA
2008     IDG4NY, ArtBreak gallery, New York, USA
2008     Helsinki Biennale, Helsinki, Finland
2008     DIVA NY 08, NYC, USA
2007     Cooler in the Shade, Festival of Innovative Music and Intermedia, NYC, USA
2007     Independent Drawing Gig #3, Quartier, The Hague, Netherlands
2006     Independent Drawing Gig #2, Museum of Contemporary Art, Skopje, Macedonia
2004     The Art of The Times (25 Years of the illustrations In the New York Times), Society of Illustrators, NYC, USA
2003     Picturing The Times (Eastern European Illustrators at the New York Times), School of Visual Arts, NYC, USA


Works in collections:

National Portrait Gallery, Washington DC, USA
The Morehead State University Prints Collection, Morehead, USA
National Art Museum, Vilnius, Lithuania
Vilnius University Graphic Collection, Vilnius, Lithuania
Many private collections, including in USA, Canada, Lithuania, Germany and France


Links:

Lietuvos Rytas on MaLonNY 3 (in Lithuanian)
Delfi on Bridges (in Lithuanian)
Ray Bartkus interview (in Lithuanian)
Strategic Foresight Group on Globe Installation
IPI on Hybrid War
Drexel on Strorylines
Drexel on Strorylines
Broadstreet Review on Storylines
HiFructose on Floating World
Bored Panda on Floating World
Demilked on Floating World
Beautiful/Decay on Floating World
Pablo Plaza on MaLonNY 2
MaLonNY on FB
MaLonNY website
Vartai gallery. "Forgeries" show info
Ray Bartkus at TEDX Vilnius
Kaire - Desine gallery. "Print" show info
MaLonNY 1
International drawings and indie music project
Interview for Steve Heller's book "Becoming Digital Designer"
Interview for Lietuvos Rytas (in Lithuanian)
Cooler in the shade 2007
Interview for Lietuvos Zinios (in Lithuanian)
IDG4 opening night on Youtube