Ralph Avery (1907–1976) was an American landscape painter and watercolorist based in Rochester, New York. He recorded city streets, churches, trees, iron fences, and the ambiance of Rochester, New York. He also painted in Mexico, the West Indies, Europe, and Northern Africa. Avery painted since his childhood. Born in Savannah, Georgia, Avery moved to Rochester in the early 1920s and studied at Rochester Institute of Technology (Athenaeum, and Mechanics Institute), earning his degree in 1928. From 1930-1931, Avery studied at Louis C. Tiffany Foundation, Oyster Bay on a scholarship. He studied with Charles Woodbury, Harry Leith-Ross, and Carl Peters, among others. Avery taught in the Department of Applied Art at RIT for twenty five years. By the time of his death in 1976, Avery had become one of the most identifiable and popular painters in Rochester. He mainly painted scenes from Rochester and the Corn Hill area including: grey-foggy views of the skyline, portraits of elegant old city homes and abstractions of natural areas. Ralph Avery Claims his work was heavily influenced by Japanese artists with simple, flat, decorative patterns and strong designs. A friend of his, John Menihan stated, "Avery's total work did much to eliminate the line between commercial and fine art...he was so good he would win a prize in any company." "The Statue of Mercury, " messenger of god's and the highlight of Rochester, New York's city skyline though Avery's eyes, is one of his most well-known works. Avery's paintings appeared on many greeting card covers, calendars, and, as mentioned before, the cover of Readers' Digest. The Bevier Gallery at Rochester Institute of Technology holds pieces from Avery's collection. On December 4 to December 18 of 1976; 75 of his paintings were on display in this gallery in celebration of his life. Avery's estate gave the Memorial Art Gallery (Rochester, NY) over 450 pieces of his collection. The collection includes sketches of how he came about some paintings, as well as tracings from photographs, among various styles of work.