Ruby Smedley

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Ruby Smedley is a Boorloo (Perth) based, multi-disciplinary, chronically ill artist, predominately working in painting. Ruby graduated from the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts with an Advanced Diploma in Props and Scenery (2013) and a Bachelor of Contemporary Art from Edith Cowan University (2019), with her final year attended at the Taipei National University of the Arts as a recipient of the New Colombo Plan Scholarship. Ruby has exhibited locally, nationally and internationally and a 2024 finalist of the Lester Prize.

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Making work about the body, Ruby navigates the intersection of chronic illness and gender biases. Examining the complexities and challenges of living with a little-understood, incurable condition. Exploring its impacts on daily life and the toll it takes on the body, both physically and emotionally. The inherent presence of gender biases in medicine and broader societal perceptions embeds an underlying discourse within her practice. Counteracting stale stereotypes and obsolete standards by celebrating honest experiences and sentiments.