Ruth Yang is a portraiture based in Florida, USA, currently pursuing her Master of Fine Arts (MFA) at the University of Miami. She earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) with Summa Cum Laude honors from the West Virginia University School of Art & Design in 2021. Born in the rural mountains of southern China, Yang overcame the loss of formal education during her early childhood to become a nationally recognized artist in the United States. Her work has been exhibited widely across the United States including at the University of Miami Lowe Art Museum, the West Virginia State Museum, West Virginia University of The Watts Museum, Marshall UniversitySchool of Art & Design, Slippery Rock University and the University of Miami’s Art Basel Wynwood Gallery and Miami Fine Art Gallery. Yang’s portrait Cydney with a Chinese Traditional Garment (Hanfu) received top honors at the 2023 West Virginia State Museum Biennial Juried Exhibition, winning the Governor’s Award and the D. Gene Jordon Memorial Award, and was acquired for the museum’s permanent collection. Same painting Published in the International Artist Magazine Issue 155 February/March 2024 and won Art Prize FINALIST Challenge No. 139 People & Figures. In 2026, Yang won the University of Miami FL Dean’s Summer Fellowship Award. In recent years she has won numerous awards in juried exhibitions across the United States.
I am a portraiture working primarily in oil paint, drawing inspiration from Classical painting traditions while exploring contemporary themes of faith, autobiography, cultural identity, and personal experience. My work is deeply rooted in my Christian faith, reflecting moments of prayer, personal transformation, and the miracles I have experienced in my life. Through portraiture, I explore how faith shapes my understanding of identity, memory, and human connection. Autobiography is another central part of my practice. My experiences of living in China, along with the memories, relationships, and cultural influences that shaped me, inform my approach to portraiture. These personal histories become a way to explore the connections between memory, place, and identity. My Third Space Series presents portraits of culturally diverse Americans within settings inspired by Classical European painting traditions and incorporates Asian garments, symbols, and architectural elements. Rather than blending cultures into a single narrative, the series explores how identity is shaped through migration, cultural exchange, and lived experience. I am interested in how different visual traditions can coexist, communicate, and influence one another while maintaining their distinct histories. Through my work, I seek to create portraits that emphasize representation, visibility, faith, and belonging. My paintings invite viewers to consider both our shared human experiences and the unique cultural and personal histories that shape each individual.
2023 West Virginia State Museum/Department of Art, Culture and History Center 23rd Biennial Juried Exhibition. ''Cydney with a Chinese Traditional Garment Han Fu''Top Governor’s Award and D. Gene Jordon Memorial Award. West Virginia State Museum officially collected the painting to their museum’s art collection.