Ruth Richmond

Ruth Richmond

Ruth tracks time, feelings, thoughts and emotions whilst walking and communicating with the natural world. She concentrates on being in the present.

“What am I seeing now? What am I feeling now? What am I thinking now?” Is how she explains her internal dialogue as she works.

Her concepts are built on previous ideas that evolve and become new ones. She takes inspiration from the countryside where she lives and the materials she encounters. Daily walks are a mainstay to her practice and wellbeing.

Soul Poles – Autumn in the Time of Covid are made from coppiced hazel stems with lines denoting time that are drawn into the wood with a hot wire. The form evolves as she works allowing for the shapes to inhabit the present. In between the timelines she uses chalk paint that enables the wood to breathe and become a personal and ornamental representation. These ‘totems’ are her way of connecting and collecting her family around her, giving them a presence. There are five poles – one for each member of her immediate family. Although unsure which pole represents which member, she argues that as a unit they are all interchangeable as they have shared skills, variable emotions, and group relationships are ever changing.