Ruth Brandt facts for kids

Ruth Brandt (born June 22, 1936 – died August 13, 1989) was a talented Irish artist and teacher. She was famous for using nature as a big inspiration in her art.

Ruth Brandt's Early Life and Learning

Ruth Brandt was born in Dublin, Ireland, on June 22, 1936. Her dad, Frank Brandt, was a graphic designer, and her mom, Muriel Brandt, was also an artist. Ruth was their oldest child.

She went to school at Santa Sabina convent in Sutton, Dublin. Around 1953, she spent some time in Paris, France, teaching English. After that, she got a three-year scholarship to study at the National College of Art and Design (NCAD) in Dublin.

Ruth also spent a year in Florence, Italy, with a special grant from the Italian government. While there, she met another Irish artist named Michael Kane. Ruth and Michael got married in 1961. They had a son and a daughter together.

Ruth Brandt's Artistic Journey

Ruth Brandt first showed her art at the Royal Hibernian Academy in 1958. One of her paintings was called At the jazz band ball. In 1961, three of her artworks were shown at the Irish Exhibition of Living Art.

After this, Ruth balanced her time between teaching and creating art. She taught at NCAD and also held summer art classes for children with her husband. She also did freelance work, like designing letters and illustrations for books. For example, she illustrated The Yeats country by Sheelah Kirby in 1962 and A treasury of Irish saints by John Irvine in 1964.

In the 1960s, Ruth designed special symbols for the Dolmen Press and Poetry Ireland. In 1965, the National Gallery of Ireland held an exhibition about the famous writer W. B. Yeats. Ruth Brandt had ten black-ink drawings of Yeats' homes in London displayed there.

Working with Architects

From the early 1970s, Ruth started working with the architect Liam McCormick. She helped create art for his churches in County Donegal, like St Michael's in Creeslough and St Conal's in Glenties.

She also designed a stained-glass window for a building called the Oratory of the Resurrection of Our Lord in Artane, Dublin. Ruth also created a sculpture for the Met Éireann office in Glasnevin. The St Brigid's parish in Blanchardstown asked Ruth to design a plaque to remember their parish priests.

Exhibitions and Teaching

Ruth was one of the first artists to contribute to the magazine Structure, which her husband Michael Kane started in 1972. From 1973, Ruth worked at the Graphic Studio Dublin, where she returned to making etchings. She helped run the gallery there until she passed away.

Ruth's art was shown in many exhibitions starting in the mid-1970s. Some of these included shows at the United Arts Club in Dublin (1975), the Kenny Gallery in Galway (1975), the Emmet Gallery (1976), and the Setanta Gallery in Dublin (1978). Her work was also part of group exhibitions in Nottingham and the Creative women exhibition in Belfast in 1976.

From 1976, Ruth became a full-time lecturer at NCAD. Her art was shown in the Five contemporary artists exhibition at Tara Galerie in Zurich in 1981. Ruth also had solo exhibitions at the Lincoln Gallery in Dublin in 1982 and at the James Gallery in Dalkey in 1985. She won awards from the Royal Hibernian Academy for her graphic art in 1986 and for her watercolours in 1989.

Ruth Brandt's Later Years

Ruth Brandt became a follower of Buddhism and attended a retreat at the Kagyu Samye Ling Monastery and Tibetan Centre in 1979. Like her mother, Ruth loved gardening and found a lot of inspiration for her art in nature.

After separating from Michael Kane, Ruth moved to Sherrard Avenue in Dublin. She also owned a small cottage in County Wicklow. Ruth's health started to decline, and she retired in 1988. She passed away at her home on August 13, 1989. Some of her artwork was part of the collection of Charles Haughey and was sold in 2009.

See also

In Spanish: Ruth Brandt para niños