COMMUNITY ART PROGRAMMING
Besides teaching Drawing to Animation students at the School of Visual Arts, Ruth works in the Bronx, New York, particularly in her local community of Morris Park where she lives and works with the following organizations designing participatory systems:
- New York Public Library
- Morris Park Community Garden
- New York City Parks Department
- Morris Park Business Improvement District
- RAIN Inc – older adult centers
- Bronx River Art Center
- New York Botanical Garden
- Bronx Council on the Arts
- Montefiore Fine Art Program
PROFESSIONAL PROFILE
Currently:
Bronx NY, United States.
July 2026:
Relocating to Melbourne, Australia.
Community-based public art consultant and public artist with over 30 years
of professional practice specializing in participatory ecological installations
in civic and environmental contexts. Expertise in designing scalable
engagement systems that enable diverse communities to contribute
meaningfully to complex public artworks.
Extensive experience delivering grant-funded public art commissions in
partnership with government agencies, cultural institutions, conservation
organizations, and community stakeholders. Proven ability to manage full
project lifecycles including concept development, community engagement
strategy, fabrication oversight, installation logistics, and public
programming.
Background includes 14 years as an exhibit sculptor with the Wildlife
Conservation Society and over 20 years teaching at the School of Visual Arts.
Work focuses on ecological awareness, environmental stewardship, and
community connection through participatory craft-based systems.
CORE CONSULTING EXPERTISE
• Community-engaged public art strategy and design
• Participatory systems design for public art
• Public art project planning and delivery
• Civic and environmentally focused public art
• Stakeholder engagement and facilitation
• Public art commissioning processes
• Outdoor installation design and implementation
• Project management, logistics, and fabrication coordination
• Grant-funded public art delivery
• Cross-sector collaboration with government, cultural, and environmental
partners
ARTIST LECTURES
Ruth is also available for guest artist talks and lectures. Topics include her textile artwork – technique and history, animal conservation, and her experiences working as an artist at the Bronx Zoo. See contact page for bookings.
About the artist: Australian born Ruth Marshall received a BFA from Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Melbourne, Australia and went on to graduate from Pratt Institute, New York City with an MFA in sculpture. Marshall has become internationally known for her one-of-a-kind hand knitted textiles of endangered animals based on research conducted at zoological and natural history collections.
She continues to work as a teaching artist in the Bronx, New York City, whether it’s older adult programming, creating and managing community art programs, or with freshman animation students as a drawing instructor at the School of Visual Arts.
See Ruth’s CV HERE
RUTH MARSHALL 