Ruby Sky Stiler: Figures in Duration

In Ruby Sky Stiler’s exhibition at Alexander Gray Associates, the viewer is first met with two distinct approaches to the figure. Along the walls, a continuous mural runs through the gallery in a warm terracotta line, while the paintings introduce a concentrated, built surface. Together, these elements define how the exhibition comes into view: through drawing, repetition, and the physical presence of the body in space.

The paintings are composed of hundreds of small shapes that lock together like tile. Each piece of the composition is hand drawn, then transferred into paint, creating surfaces that resemble patchwork or relief. These small units shift in tone from pale blue to deep marine, giving the figures a clear structure without relying on volume or shading. Limbs and torsos are built from stacked curves and angled blocks, so the figure becomes visible through the gradual layering of shapes rather than through an outline. The effect is straightforward and easy to read, anchored in a process that echoes the logic of collage.

The mural functions differently. It stretches from one end of the gallery to the other in a single unbroken drawing. Its figures are pared down to outlines: long torsos, bent knees, tilted heads. The terracotta color sits lightly on the wall, yet its scale gives the drawing a strong architectural presence. Moving around corners and doorways, it sets the rhythm of the room, and its placement at eye level brings the viewer into its scale. 

Seeing the mural and paintings together clarifies how Stiler thinks about the figure as both a subject and a structure. The mural reduces the body to line, treating it as a framework that can guide the room. The paintings treat the body as something assembled, built piece by piece from repeated marks. This contrast shows how Stiler shifts between drawing and construction, between a figure that directs space and a figure that grows from the surface outward.