Currently, I work with local artists in Tennessee, leading a program for regional artists to meet, gain professional knowledge, and network. Meet Me at The MACC
Ruth Chase exhibits a painting and video. Also, a co-curator of the exhibition. The exhibition is the result of a journey the Tribe embarked on through a series of gatherings and workshops that centered on discussions about land, water, and people.
“Speaking of art school….impressions, stories and remembrances as told by alumni and faculty of the San Francisco Art Institute”. This series is about perpetuating the culture and legacy of the San Francisco Art Institute through recorded interviews.
There is an exhibition that is the result of an eight month journey I’ve been on with California Heritage: Indigenous Research Project (CHIRP), “The Story of Land, Water, and People.”
In the Summer of 2023, it was so exciting to create and co-lead an outdoor experience at Sierra Friends Center/ Woolman in Nevada City, CA where the Tribal youth and elders went into the woods to create art installations with a focus on belonging to the environment.
This experience was part of a larger program to engage in Cultural practices and protocols as tools for healing, Cultural revitalization, and trauma mitigation.
I’m deeply grateful for this opportunity to amplify Nisenan narratives through the Arts. This journey has instilled in me a profound appreciation for the transformative ability of storytelling through artistic expression.
Working with Shelly Covert, Saxon Thomas, Mira Clark, and the Tribal Elders through weekly workshops, online and at ‘Uba Seo: Nisenan Arts and Culture, has been a very powerful experience.
Using the power of art to engage in meaningful dialogue, to heal, and to educate the public and ourselves transform lives.
Funded in part by the California Arts Council, a state agency, through the Upstate California Creative Corps program and builds upon CHIRP’s Visibility Through Art initiative. It fosters collaborations between artists and Tribal culture bearers to increase public awareness and engage the community in discussions about Tribal social justice, Nisenan history, and environmental issues related to water and land.
I am a California Creative Corps Grantee through my work with CHIRP.
Saving the best for last……
The exhibition is the result of a journey the Tribe embarked on through a series of gatherings and workshops that centered on discussions about land, water, and people. The eight-month exchange resulted in the creation of paintings, drawings, beadwork, film, and sculpture.
OPENING ART RECEPTION Saturday, March 16th, 6- 9:30 pm
EXHIBITING Nisenan Tribal Member Artists: Shelly Covert, Ginger Covert, Lorena Davis, Sarah Thomas, Cindy Buero, Debra McBrien, Saxon Thomas Participating Artists: Nikila Badua, Maile Claire, Mira Clark, Ruth Chase, Jan-Michelle Sawyer Native | Nisenan Special Guest Artists: Tiffany Adams and Deerstine Madrone Suehead
The Story of Land, Water, and People will build on the foundation of CHIRP’s Visibility Through Art (VTA) initiative. This project coordinates collaborations among artists and Tribal Culture bearers to increase public awareness and engage the public related to social justice, through the lens of environment-related issues including, land, water, and people.
In addition, non-Tribal artists collaborated individually with CHIRP on artworks to create respectful and reflective works. These conversations come to light in this exhibition by utilizing art as the conduit. This event will promote the visibility of important Tribal social justice issues and expand conversations.
This activity is funded in part by the California Arts Council, a state agency, through the Upstate California Creative Corps program, administered by Nevada County Arts Council.
Recently, I discovered that I could feel electromagnetic fields, which was affecting my ability to work inside my studio. To address this, I moved my creative practice outdoors, where the natural environment helps alleviate my symptoms. This shift has led my work to explore how electromagnetic fields and unseen energies impact our bodies and relationships.
What Is True acrylic on canvas, 30 x 24, 2024
The Truth Within acrylic and wax on linen, 8 x 10, 2024
Birth of A Universe acrylic and wax on canvas, 12 x 12, 2024
MACC at The Streets – Passion Projects – September 1 – 30
The exhibition is a collection of works that come from several of Ruth’s award winning and grant funded passion projects exploring themes of the human spirit and belonging. Her paintings are acrylic on canvas, blurring the lines with drips and intersecting patterns, shapes, and edges, allowing drips to break up hard lines to impart a sense of history, memory, and emotional complexity.
“The public plays a vital role in the outcome of my work, taking a journey with me that can last up to three years. Self-aware subjects with strong belief systems fascinate me and become the subjects of my work.” – Ruth Chase
ABOUT THE ARTIST Ruth Chase is a multimedia artist born in Venice, CA, living in Tennessee. She is a graduate of the San Francisco Art Institute whose artistic practice is inquiry-based and engages community bridge-building. She was awarded a Certificate of Appreciation from the City of Los Angeles for Art in Action and a grant to an individual artist from the Carl Jacobs Foundation. She was granted a residency at the Millay Colony for the Arts in NY, published in Professional Artist Magazine, Catapult Art Magazine, and Huffington Post, and has taught at the Crocker Art Museum. Ruth was a featured artist on the Dead Files TV program and was awarded an Artist in Residence at Nevada County Arts for Artist Activating Communities through a grant from the California Arts Council for three consecutive years. Her film BELONGING screened at the 18th Annual Nevada City Film Festival and Wild & Scenic Film Festival. Ruth received the Legendary Female Artist of Venice, exhibited in The Crocker Kingsley, the Museum of Northern California Art, and the Diego Rivera Gallery at the San Francisco Art Institute, most recently her work was featured on the Nashville Sign.
MACC at The Streets 300 Indian Lake Blvd. A140 Hendersonville, TN 37075
Wed – Fri 11:30 – 7:30 PM Sat 10 – 5 PM Sun 1 – 5 PM Or by appointment: 615-822-0789 EVENT
You are invited to view Ruth’s work at her home studio 30 min outside of Nashville, Tennessee. Ruth moved to Tennessee in February of this year and is excited to introduce her work to the community. The event will be casual with many of Ruth’s past works on display.
Sunday, July 24, 2022 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM RSVP for directions
Ruth Chase is a multimedia artist working with themes of belonging, visibility, and what it means to be a human. Ruth is a graduate of the San Francisco Art Institute whose artistic practice is inquiry-based and engages community bridge-building. She was awarded a Certificate of Appreciation from the City of Los Angeles for Art in Action and a grant to an individual artist from the Carl Jacobs Foundation. She was granted a residency at the Millay Colony for the Arts in NY, published in Professional Artist Magazine, Catapult Art Magazine, and Huffington Post, and has taught at the Crocker Art Museum. Ruth was a featured artist on the Dead Files TV program and was awarded an Artist in Residence at Nevada County Arts for Artist Activating Communities through a grant from the California Arts Council for three consecutive years. Her film BELONGING screened at the 18th Annual Nevada City Film Festival and Wild & Scenic Film Festival. Ruth received the Legendary Female Artist of Venice, exhibited in The Crocker Kingsley, the Museum of Northern California Art, and the Diego Rivera Gallery at the San Francisco Art Institute.
Ruth paints in acrylic on canvas, blurring the lines with drips and intersecting patterns, shapes and edges. The paintings are created by layering several thin washes of color to impart a sense of history, experience, and emotional complexity. Her art film is a collage of moments that allow the viewer to connect with unlikely perspectives, finding a sense of belonging with someone they may see as “other.”
My art on 9th and O St. is an extension of my studio paintings and video work that reevaluate the roles women have resisted and submitted — highlighting the wisdom women embody beyond limited role models.
“Women: Independence, Interdependence”
by Ruth Chase
acrylic, thread, cotton yarn on cardboard with video
24 x 48″
I am exploring independence and interdependence of women. Through the use of cardboard, acrylic paint, thread, and cotton yarn, this piece is a meditation on how pain is stored in the female body. With phrases like I am afraid to be vulnerable, I am not lovable, and childhood fear taught me not to trust, were written on each disc, and used to create the breast element in the work. Within the work, there are references to gender dysphoria, menses as independence and interdependence, and the female body as being in service.
THE ART OF COLLABORATION – RUTH CHASE AND CHANTELLE GOLDTHWAITE
“Women: Independence, Interdependence”
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