Creating art is my key to the secret garden, my way down the rabbit
hole, my looking glass.
It started in early childhood -- a form of escapism from the pain, at the age of five, of having lost a father, brother and grandmother all within a year. From the beginning the process of transforming a blank sheet of paper or canvas has struck me as magical and comforting. And, over the years, that magical process has had its way with me, leading me from hobby to professional artist and graphic designer. It fills me with a sense of accomplishment and integrity, and has proven a most amenable and peaceful vehicle for translating inner vision to outer reality.
I create art and graphic design from the inside out. Though I work quite deliberately, consciously employing both traditional and innovative techniques, my unconscious is the undisputed project manager.
The concrete, repetitive nature of this work frees my imagination and provides many opportunities for happy accident and grace to influence the finished product.
Recently I discovered some childhood drawings: simple, crayoned sketches that resonate deeply within my current work. Inspired and invigorated by a renewed sense of continuity, and awed by the mystery of how creation occurs, I am now using richly diverse subject matter, exploring many patterns, textures and colors in graphic design as well as incorporating them into my paintings and other art projects. Once completed, the work is there for those who wish to contemplate for themselves the meaning and direction that formed each piece.
Ruthanne is a professional artist and free-lance graphic designer, working in the Oklahoma area and surrounding states. She and her husband, Gary, live in an 80-year-old restored English Tudor Revival home in the Historical District of Oklahoma City. Their 11-year-old Chow/German Shepherd mix dog, Norm, resides with them. They have one son, Nathan, and daughter-in-law, Melissa, along with two grandchildren, eleven-year-old Austin and 1-year-old Karlee.