From the Adirondacks to Santa Fe: Bette Ridgeway to Receive The International Prize 'The Universal Genius' in Milan
Arc of the Imaginals, with Bette Ridgeway in the foreground, 2019. Acrylic on canvas.180 x 252 inches. Commissioned by The Meridian Group/Gensler Architects for The Boro, Tysons, Virginia. Photographer: Dane Penland
Arc of the Imaginals, 2019. Acrylic on canvas. 180 x 252 inches. Commissioned by The Meridian Group/Gensler Architects for The Boro, Tysons, Virginia. Photographer: Dane Penland
Bette Ridgeway in her Santa Fe, New Mexico studio, 2026
A Last Voice of American Abstract Expressionism Honored for a Lifetime in the Arts
SANTA FE, NM, UNITED STATES, March 5, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- From the quiet vastness of the Adirondack Mountains to the luminous skies of Santa Fe, painter Bette Ridgeway’s journey traces a distinctly American arc—one that now culminates on the international stage. On March 21, 2026, Ridgeway will receive The International Prize “The Universal Genius”, a Leonardo da Vinci tribute presented at the Museo Nazionale Scienza e Tecnologia Leonardo da Vinci in Milan, Italy. The distinction honors individuals whose work reflects intellectual depth, innovation, and enduring cultural contribution.
At 86, Ridgeway is widely regarded as one of the last living artists in the lineage of American Abstract Expressionism, the twentieth-century movement that transformed global painting through scale, gesture, and the primacy of color. Her recognition in Milan situates her practice within a broader historical continuum—bridging Renaissance ideals of inquiry and mastery with the radical modernism that reshaped contemporary art.
Born in 1940 in Tupper Lake, New York, in the Adirondacks near the Canadian border, Ridgeway’s artistic sensibility was shaped by the elemental clarity of the Northeast landscape. She came of age on the East Coast, studying at the Albany Institute of History and Art, Russell Sage College, the New York School of Interior Design, and the Art Students League in New York City. Her early professional life unfolded along the New York–Washington, D.C. corridor, where she pursued advanced private studies and later served as Executive Director and CEO of Very Special Arts, the international arts education organization affiliated with the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
It was through her work in Washington that Ridgeway met the renowned Abstract Expressionist Paul Jenkins, who became her mentor for decades. Jenkins urged her to eliminate subject matter, work on a monumental scale, and allow color to function as the primary vehicle of meaning. Their sustained artistic dialogue positioned Ridgeway as a rare and direct link to first-generation American abstraction—what many critics now describe as one of its last living voices.
Since relocating to Santa Fe in 1996—nearly three decades ago—Ridgeway has continued to refine her signature technique, which she calls “layering light.” Applying successive veils of transparent acrylic, often infused with rainwater, she builds surfaces that radiate luminosity and spatial depth. Her paintings do not depict objects; rather, they evoke states of time, atmosphere, and emotion. “I am painting a moment, not a thing,” the artist has written.
Her career has garnered sustained international recognition. In 2025, a major monograph, Bette Ridgeway: Romancing Color, was published by Snap Collective Publishing in Copenhagen and printed in Germany, affirming her position within contemporary art discourse. She is also featured in the forthcoming volume Investible Artists 2026, placing her alongside leading figures in the global art market.
The presentation of The International Prize “The Universal Genius” acknowledges not only Ridgeway’s artistic excellence, but also a lifetime of cultural leadership and historical continuity. From the Adirondacks to Washington, from Santa Fe to Milan, her work embodies a sustained commitment to the expressive and philosophical power of abstraction.
For Santa Fe, the Southwest, and her East Coast roots, this honor represents more than an award—it affirms Bette Ridgeway’s place within the living history of American art.
Samantha Paige Furgason
ARTWORKinternational INC Press
sam@artworkinternational.com
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Carlo Zanella has produced directed this video which celebrates the career of Bette Ridgeway, an internationally-awarded painter.
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