Born in 1947, John Riffe was a beloved and talented creative individual, residing in Bruceton Mills, WV. While Riffe held a variety of positions and was immersed in numerous communities, he continuously found deep joy in the artistic process and sharing his artistic creations. From his passion for nature and his love of words, Riffe created titled sculptures from found objects, which he named Abject d’Art by Johnre.

A piece written by Winston Fuller captures the creative identity of John Riffe. 

Fuller writes, 

“To visit the Museum of Fun Art on the second floor of a lakeside house not far from Morgantown, West Virginia is like learning a language by immersion. You plunge in and hope for the best. You just do it, Nike style, put your feet on the stairs and climb up into an exuberant array of objects and paintings and clipping, and the puns that title and attend them. What you find, as you make your way up the stairs under an open beam with a chair balanced on top, is what the French call bricolage, assemblies of what’s at hand. Art made out of stuff. And as is the way of many outsider artists, the objects they make are not on display so much as they are set down, nailed up, juxtaposed, pasted together, and leaned against. It’s crowded. joyfully crowded. at the top of the stairs, you realize immediately that you’ve now become fully immersed in the punning art of Johnre, the persona of artist and curator John Riffe, and you begin doing your best to tread the punning waters.” 

Please view the provided images and join the Arts Council in remembering the talented and passionate individual that is John Riffe.