About
Ruth Schmidt (née Ilonka Ruth), born in 1982 in Transylvania, now lives and works in Budapest.
If they ask her how long she has been painting, she would say since 2017, even though she started earlier, attending several drawing and painting classes. These years before 2017, she prefers to call “experiments.”
The years 2017-2021 she calls ‘The Learning Years’ in which she produced vast amount of study paintings in many styles. She particularly likes the works of Piet Mondrian, Andy Warhol, Salvador Dali, Albert Bierstadt, Rembrandt van Rijn, Karoly Marko …. The names bear witness she enjoyed experimenting with different styles and techniques. These can be seen mainly in her eclectic study paintings, where she uses a mixture of features from various ages, styles, and trends. Her admiration for Warhol and Mondrian can be seen in her pop art and Mondrian-inspired geometric figurative paintings. Her search for a way can be seen in her paintings during these days.
In 2020, her style, rich in narrative and depth, began to unfold. She paintsartworks that combine realism with imagination.
In these, she found her unique voice and artistic identity.
His mentor, Kákmán Gasztonyi, writes the following about him:
“Ruth Schmidt draws on the knowledge of the masters of past centuries, using their painting techniques to address the people of the 21st century. Her works, painted with the biggest professional shyness and fantastic precision, provide an aesthetic visual experience that is unmistakably unique to her. The paintings are narratives where the bare experience gets enriched with stories and feelings. Ruth’s basic nature is fun, a positive worldview, humour. Unfortunately, humour is having less and less space in contemporary painting, even though it is one of the greatest gifts of our lives. Fortunately, the Creator was generous with this gift to Ruth. The depiction of divine power also appears in her paintings, as her faith is very important to her. Her painting is perhaps best characterized by symbolism, but surrealism also appears occasionally. After all her ‘study paintings’ we will not find in her work a simple still life, or landscape or classically planned compositions. There is always a ‘twist’ by Ruth out there that transcends and makes the realistic painting to art.
Ruth’s talent, diligence, and sense of purpose have many, many more excellent paintings in store for us.”
ARTISTIC STATEMENT
„In my artistic practice, I seek to move beyond mere imitation of the visible world and to convey the complex emotions and thoughts that reside in the unseen aspects of life such as affection, child-like faith, human cooperation, God-to-human relationship, grief, hope, love, loss, pain, humour, social criticism, self-criticism. Through my symbolist pieces, which often venture into surrealism, I strive to portray the unspeakable.
Drawing from personal experiences, my paintings become intimate depictions of my inner world, each piece representing a fragment of my soul. Henry Ward Beecher's thought perfectly reflects my art: “Every artist dips his brush in his own soul, and paints his own nature into his pictures.” Through my work, I strive to connect with viewers on a deep level, encouraging them to explore and appreciate the richness of their own emotional landscapes.”
SOLO EXHIBITIONS:
2026 - Latvia (Riga) - Hungarian Embassy in Riga/ David Art Gallery - Symbol
2026 - Finnland (Helsinki) - Helsinki Liszt Institute/ David Art Gallery - Symbol
2025 - Hungary (Budapest) - David Art Gallery/ Y2O Elements – Symbol Next
2025 - Hungary (Budapest) - David Art Gallery - Symbol
2024 - Hungary (Miskolc) - MÖM - It is only with the heart that one can see rightly…
2022 - Romania (Vlahita) - Aron Gabor Cultural Center - The Great Journey
2021 - Hungary (Budapest) - Secret Gallery - With different eyes
2020 - Hungary (Budapest) - Schmidt Ruth Paintings- independent gallery and studio-permanent exhibition (from March 2020)
GROUP EXHIBITIONS:
2026 - Hungary (Budapest) - David Art Gallery/ Fine Arts Capital - Open Doors
2026 - Hungary (Budapest) - David Art Gallery - Biennale of the Twelve
2026 - USA (New York) - One Art Space - Artist Talk
2026 - Hungary (Budapest) - C3/ David Art Gallery - Creatures of the dreams
2026 - Hungary (Hévíz) - Le Primore Superior/ David Art Gallery - CEO
2026 - Hungary (Budapest) - David Art Gallery - AAAAfter
2026 - Hungary (Budapest, Whale) - David Art Gallery - Art and Antique
2026 - Hungary (Budapest) - Sors Gallery- Fingerprints
2026 - Hungary (Budapest) - David Art Gallery/Fine Arts Capital - Mother Nature-Water
2026 - Hungary (Budapest) - Golden Duck Gallery - Fingerprints
2025 - Hungary (Budapest) - Breitling Budapest/David Art Gallery - Forever Time
2025 - Hungary (Budapest) - David Gallery - Construct Nature
2025 - Hungary (Budapest) - Kincsem Kult/David Art Gallery - My Broken Renaissance
2025 - Hungary (Budapest) - Istvan Takacs Gallery - XXXIV. National Exhibition of the Hungarian Independent Salon
2025 - Spain (Damien) - Cultural Center - Tartget la Mancha
2025 - Belgium (Turnhout) - Art UP Contemporary - Mother Nature - Water
2025 - Spain (Madrid) - Ateneo de Madrid - Tartget
2025 - Hungary (Budapest) - David Art Gallery - Elements
2025 - Hungary (Salgotarjan) - Salgotarjan Cultural Center/ David Art Gallery - Colors of Rebirth
2025 - Hungary (Budapest) - Istvan Takacs Gallery - XXXIII. National Exhibition of the Hungarian Independent Salon
2024 - Austria (Vienna) - CITYgalleryVIENNA and Golden Duck Gallery - Christmas at the Opera House
2024 - Hungary (Budapest) - David Art Gallery - 100 paintings, 100 thoughts
2024 - Hungary (Budapest) - K Gallery - Artists room
2024 - Monaco - Salon International D'art Contemporain - represented by Agaphe Gallery
2024 - Greece (Athens) - Art Number23 Gallery - Athen Open Art
2024 - Japan (Tokyo) - Design Festa Gallery - Tokyo Open Art
2024 - USA (New York) - Artexpo New York - Represented by Artavita/ Worldvide Art
2024 - Italy (Lavagna) - Con-Temporary Art Observatorium - The Art of Freedom 2.
2024 - USA (St. Petersburg) - Poynter Park - Embracing Our Differences 2.
2024 - Hungary (Budapest) - David Art Gallery - Papillon Carnevale
2024 - USA (Sarasota) - Florida's Bayfront Park - Embracing Our Differences 1.
2023 - France (Paris) - Salon International D’Art Contemporain in Carousel de Louvre Paris
2023 - UK (London) - The 6th London Art Biennale
2023 - UK (London) - The Holy Art GalleryJuly)
2023 - Hungary (Budapest) - Teravarna Gallery (Los Angeles, USA) and Golden Duck Gallery - (Budapest) - artBIAS
2023 - Spain (Madrid) - Gaudi Gallery - The brushstokes of freshness
2023 - Hungary (Budapest) - Golden Duck Gallery - The First Catalogue
2023 - France (Nice) - Nice Art Expo
2023 - Hungary (Budapest) - Golden Duck Gallery - Art for Peace
2022 - UK (London) - New Artist fair - The Truman Brewery
2022 - Hungary (Budapest) - Jancso Art Gallery/ Simple Garden - Spring in the city
2022 - UK (Newark) - Thoresby Gallery - Human Gold
2019 - Hungary (Budapest) - Zsilip Art Center - Flora and fauna
MEDIA APPEARANCES:
2025 - UK - Art Seen Magazin - Issue Nr. 18.- interview
2025 - UK - Artist Talk Magazin - Issue Nr. 40.
2025 - Canada (Toronto) - Divide Magazin - Issue Nr.15 - interview
2025 - France (Lyon) - Circle Quarterly Art Review - Issue 11
2024 - Canada (Toronto) - Divide Magazin- Issue Nr.11
2024 - UK - Art Seen Magazin - Autumn edition
2024 - USA (Los Angeles) - Teravarna Gallery - Art Talks - video interviw
2024 - Netherland - Visual Art Journal Magazin - Issue 2, interview
2024 - USA (Sarasota) - Herald-Tribune - 2024 EOD People’s Choice Award
2024 - Hungary (Miskolc) - Miskolc Diary - Volume XXI, Issue 4. (January 27)
2024 - Hungary - BOON (Borsod-Abauj-Zemplen County News Portal) (January 27)
2023- Hungary (Budapest) - RTL TV, Target Direction- interview (broadcast 26th november)
2023 - Hungary (Budapest) - Muvesz Ma, Cultur and Arts Magazine, online (July 29)
2023 - Hungary (Budapest) - ARTsCAP Contemporary Art Magazin 2023/2/XI appearance
2023 - Hungary (Budapest) - ARTsCAP Contemporary Art Magazin 2022/1/X appearance
2021 - Hungary (Budapest) - Karc Fm 105.9 Radio interview/ Paholy
2020 - USA (Newfields, New Hampshire) –Creativ Guts Zine/ spring publication, appearance- “Wild horses”
2017 - Hungary (Budapest) - Karc Fm 105.9 Radio interview, Paholy
RECOGNITIONS:
2025 – Madrid (Spain) – Ateneo Madrid (Tartget Prize) – Michael Harding Award
2024 - Austria (Vienna) - CITYgalleryVIENNA - Concept Award
2024 - USA (New York) - ArtJobs- Artist of the month
2024 - France (Lyon) - Circle Foundation for the Arts - Art IDEAL Contest- Artistic Materful Mind Award
2024 - USA (Sarasota) - Embracing Our Differences - People’s Choice Award
2023 - France (Lyon) - Circle Quarterly Art Review Magazine Contest - Artistic Excellence Award
2023 - USA (Santa Barbara) - World Wide Art/ Artavita Contest - 1st place
2023 - United Kingdom (London), selected as one of the artists of the 6th London Art Biennale
2023 - Hungary (Budapest)- Teravarna Gallery (Los Angeles, USA) and Golden Duck Gallery - (Budapest) - „artBIAS” - Special Jury Award
2021 - USA (New York) - People and Paintings Gallery - „Vunerable” - Popular vote award
2021 - USA (New York) - People and Paintings Gallery - „Our Image of God and Our Transcendent World” - Award of excellence
2019 - Hungary (Budapest) - Zsilip Art Center painting competition- “Fauna and Flora”- audience vote (professional category) - Best in show
2019 - Hungary (Budapest) - The Zsilip Art Center painting competition (professional category) - second place