Ryah Ludins

Ryah Ludins (1896–1957) was a Ukrainian-born American muralist, painter, printmaker, art teacher, and writer. She made murals for post offices and other government buildings during the Great Depression and also obtained commissions for murals from Mexican authorities and an industrial concern. Unusually versatile in her technique, she made murals in fresco, mixed media, and wood relief, as well as on canvas and dry plaster. She exhibited her paintings widely but became better known as a printmaker after prints such as "Cassis" and "Bombing" (about 1944) drew favorable notice from critics. She taught art in academic settings and privately, wrote and illustrated a children's book, and contributed an article to a radical left-wing art magazine. A career spanning more than three decades ended when she succumbed to a long illness in the late 1950s.

Early life and education

Born in Ukraine, Ludins came to New York City aged eight in 1904 and spent most of the rest of her life in the city. After graduating from high school she enrolled in Columbia Teachers College in 1920, intending to take up art education as her career. Eugene was an artist.

In 1934, Ludins married a Mexican named Juan de Fuentes, but the marriage lasted only a few months. One source reports that she told her niece, "she liked men, she just didn’t want to find one in her bed in the morning".