'The natural world is the source of my inspiration, merging natural and rational with notions of beauty and the transcendental.'
Ruth Irvine was born in The Clogher Valley, Co Tyrone where she spent her childhood and has early memories of drawing and painting , using nature as her inspiration. This influence continued throughout her teaching career on the North Coast where she painted in watercolour and more recently in oils having studied each medium under a Master of Fine Art. Her large abstract works offer a challenge with deep layers of paint, lending each piece a commanding presence from the nebulae to the seashore. Ruth's works can be found in private collections worldwide over the last 40 years, including one gifted to Her Majesty the Queen in 2000. Her work is currently exhibited in north55gallery - a family collaborative space in Cornwall (north55gallery .com)and on Saatchi Art Online Gallery. She chose to exhibit “Sunset at Portstewart Strand” for the 60th Anniversary Exhibition of USWA . This atmospheric abstract , painted using a palette knife epitomises her authoritative use of colour which is ironically combined with a freedom of light and space to depict a well known and loved landmark with ethereal qualities.