Ruthadell Anderson ( Isham, January 21, 1922 – March 8, 2018) was an American

fiber artist Fiber (spelled fibre in British English; from ) is a natural or artificial substance that is significantly longer than it is wide. Fibers are often used in the manufacture of other materials. The strongest engineering materials often incorp ...

. She was known for her sculptures and textiles.

Biography

Ruthadell Adell Isham was born on January 21 1922 in San Jose, California. Her first weaving lesson was while she was in high school. She attended San Jose State College (now

San Jose State University San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the List of oldest schools in California, oldest public university on the West Coast of ...

), where she earned a B.A. degree in 1943. She earned a M.F.A. degree in 1964 from the

University of Hawaiʻi The University of Hawaiʻi System is a public college and university system in Hawaii. The system confers associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees through three universities, seven community colleges, an employment training center, ...

Her work is included in the permanent collection of the

Smithsonian American Art Museum The Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM; formerly the National Museum of American Art) is a museum in Washington, D.C., part of the Smithsonian Institution. Together with its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, SAAM holds one of the world's lar ...

. Anderson created textile screens for the Robert Thurston Memorial Chapel at

Punahou School Punahou School (known as Oahu College until 1934) is a private, co-educational, college preparatory school in Honolulu, Hawaii. More than 3,700 students attend the school from kindergarten through 12th grade. The school was established by P ...

, a building designed and built in 1966 by architect

Vladimir Ossipoff Vladimir ‘Val’ Nicholas Ossipoff () was an American architect best known for his works in the state of Hawai'i. Life Early life and schooling Ossipoff was born November 25, 1907, in Vladivostok, a part of the Russian Empire. Because his fath ...

. Two of her tapestries are installed in the Hawaii State House: one in the chamber of the

Hawaii House of Representatives The Hawaii House of Representatives () is the lower house of the Hawaii State Legislature. Pursuant to Article III, Section 3 of the Constitution of Hawaii, amended during the 1978 Hawaii State Constitutional Convention, 1978 constit ...

, and the other in the chamber of the

Hawaii Senate The Hawaii State Senate ( Hawaiian: Ka ‘Aha Kenekoa) is the upper house of the Hawaii State Legislature. It consists of twenty-five members elected from an equal number of constituent districts across the islands and is led by the President ...

. Each of the tapestries is forty feet tall, and required the work of 16 weavers over three years. She died in

Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

on March 8, 2018, at the age of 96.

References

1922 births 2018 deaths 20th-century American women textile artists 20th-century American textile artists 21st-century American women textile artists 21st-century American textile artists Artists from San Jose, California Artists in the Smithsonian American Art Museum collection San Jose State University alumni University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa alumni Textile artists from California Textile artists from Hawaii {{US-artist-stub