At the last ASV Members Meeting our guest speaker, RUTH LYON spoke about her work...

Ruth Lyon has worked in the State Education system as a teacher and instructor since 1973, and lecturer at RMIT University since 1995. She has been an exhibiting artist since the late 70’s and has accomplished many public sculpture commissions such as the Cornish Miner, in Bendigo (1995) . Since the mid 80’s her attention was redirected to television and makeup artistry. In 1999 she was offered the role of Production Designer on the feature film ‘Hostage to Fate’ and since has worked with private film companies on features, shorts and teasers as a Production Designer/Art Director.


Life’s Mystery
“Is life’s mystery trapped within our grasp
Dark times allow us to contemplate
the art of just being
Watch the waters dance around our feet
Allow the healing ripples
To find their own way.”

Marija Patterson introduced Ruth Lyon as a person full of energy and zest for life, whom she has known for some time and who has been a great inspiration to her. Ruth began her artistic career as a painter and printmaker; but her artistic repertoire is extensive and includes sculpture, ballet, writing, as well as production design and artistic direction for film. The creative process for Ruth has always been very rewarding but it is difficult to live by art alone. Ruth juggles her many interests with teaching, mainly at RMIT; and she also holds private classes.

Detail from the ‘Walls of Refl ection’ Image courtesy of the artist.
(Seen here bronze sculpture of girl only)

Ruth began the evening by showing us a sculptural work, ‘Walls of Reflection’ that evolved from a poem she wrote, [titled, Life’s Mystery] when her dog was dying. [The poem was ultimately chiselled into granite to became part of the sculptural work created for the Necropolis Springvale.] Ruth’s intention was to create,“something to make the place alive.”
Featured in the work are two bronze sculptures of a boy and a girl playing in a moat (see picture of sculpture of the girl).

Ruth did her art training in Bendigo, so was very pleased when she was asked to make a sculpture for that City.  Although the sculpture was about mining in Bendigo, it also portrays miners wives [in relief, in occupations such as, prostitution and cleaning borne out of necessity after being widowed as a result of mining deaths].

Portrait of Jan Nelson,artist. Image courtesy of the artist

Ruth then showed images of her sculptural portraits (busts as well as torsos) that she made of women who had achieved prominence in their area of endeavour (some of the women featured included: Deborah Lawrie, a Jumbo Jet pilot; Joan Kirner AM, the first female premier of Victoria; Dr Lorna Sisley, a surgeon; Dr Elisabeth Lewis, a neuro surgeon and Raelene Boyle, a Commonwealth Olympic champion). They were beautifully sculpted likenesses in clay (Bendigo raku chosen for its durability and strength) that had been fired then painted.

By Gillian Govan