“My paintings are a spontaneous occurrence, born out of the experience, but maturing reflexively in the process of creation. My technique is controlled improvisation. Gravity is my medium. Images are caught with intent.”Born in New York’s Adirondack Mountains, Ridgeway’s background includes graphic design study at Russell Sage College in Troy, New York and employment with Reuben H. Donnelley Advertising Corporation as a designer. She then attended the School of Interior Design Art and the Art Students League, NYC. Studies continued abroad: painting, exhibiting, teaching, immersing in the cultures of Madagascar, Australia and Chile.Returning to the US, her fine art and professional careers continued. Among her positions: Visual Arts Specialist, Maryland National Capital Park & Planning Commission and Executive Director/CEO of Very Special Arts, an educational affiliate of The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.Acclaimed Abstract Expressionist painter Paul Jenkins mentored her over several decades. Forty years hence, her signature technique of “Layering Light” on large-scale, luminous poured canvases and metal sculptures has been perfected. Italian art critic Salvatore Russo recently wrote an essay on Ridgeway entitled “The True Heir of Paul Jenkins.”Since the mid-1990s, Ridgeway has been creating/residing in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Exhibitions in 80+ museums, universities and galleries include: Royal Scottish Academy; Southwest Gallery; #ArtOnScreen at Big Screen Plaza, New York; NYB Gallery; Ocean Galleries; London Art Biennale Swiss Art Expo; SBB Eventhall Zürich Main Station; Ventana Fine Art; Palais Royale; Barcelona International Art Fair; Women's Essence, a concomitant exhibition/58th Venice Biennale; Embassy of Madagascar; and Shaw Gallery. Permanent public placements: The Boro Building, Mayo Clinic and the Federal Reserve Bank. Recent awards are 2024 Sandro Botticelli International Prize; Collectors Art Prize 2023/Contemporary Art Curator Magazine; Harmony for Humanity: The Global Consciousness Art Prize, Contemporary Art Collectors, 2023; International Caravaggio Prize: Great Master of Art 2022, Milan; International Leonardo DaVinci Prize, Florence; and Michelangelo International Prize, Rome; and Apero 1st Place, Apero Fine Art Publication.Numerous publications have featured her work, among them: cover artist for "Songs for the Spirit" / "Canciones para el espíritu," by Robert Giron, published by Gival Press, winner Best Book for Spiritual Bilingual Award, National Association of Book Entrepreneurs; Abstract: Contemporary Magazine; About Place Journal; Contemporary Art Collectors Magazine; Modern Renaissance; LandEscape Art Review, UK; MVIBE, Greece; Artwork Gallery Contemporary Art Magazine, Ukraine; Sage Magazine, Yale School of the Environment; Magazine 43: Berlin, Hong Kong, Manila; Art Magazenium; ArtifactNYC Journal; ART UP MI, Milan; Another Chicago Magazine; 3Elements Review; Trend Magazine; Art Reveal; Dream Noir; RipRap Literary Journal; Jet Fuel Review; Kitchen Table Quarterly; Barzakh Magazine; It’s Liquid; Art Folio; Contemporary Masters; 805 Lit + Art; Cleaver International Magazine; It’s Liquid; and Calyx. Ridgeway has also penned several books about art and process.