The National Gallery of Ireland has unveiled a striking portrait of Ruth Negga, the acclaimed actor and producer who was raised in Limerick. The commissioned artwork, painted by Dublin-based artist David Booth, is now on public display in the gallery's Portrait Gallery, celebrating Negga's extensive and distinguished career in both film and television.
The portrait, simply titled "Ruth," was created by David Booth, who won the National Gallery's prestigious Portrait Prize in 2022. Booth carefully considered multiple settings for the piece, including Trinity College and a coffee shop in Dublin, before he and Negga ultimately decided on the courtyard of the National Gallery of Ireland as the perfect backdrop for the artwork.
Ruth Negga was born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, but was raised in Limerick, Ireland, where she attended Scoil Carmel before pursuing her higher education at Trinity College Dublin. Her remarkable acting career has earned her critical acclaim and numerous accolades, most notably for her powerful performance in the film "Loving," which earned her an Oscar nomination in 2017. More recently, she received an Emmy nomination for her compelling role in the television series "Presumed Innocent."
According to the artist, his primary goal in creating the portrait was to ensure that Negga's gaze would confront viewers directly, establishing what he describes as a "powerful sense of presence and immediacy." This artistic choice reflects Booth's intention to capture not just Negga's physical likeness, but also her commanding screen presence and artistic gravitas.
In a statement about the portrait, Ruth Negga expressed her deep appreciation for being selected as the subject of the artwork. She described it as an "absolute honor" to serve as the sitter for the portrait and praised Booth's work, saying the piece was infused with the artist's own "grace, tenderness, and a sense of the mysterious."
The portrait is now available for public viewing free of charge in the Portrait Gallery at the National Gallery of Ireland. In addition to Negga's portrait, the gallery also unveiled a portrait of actor Stephen Rea, created by photographer David Stephenson, during the same ceremony. Both works represent the gallery's ongoing commitment to celebrating Irish talent in the performing arts through visual representation.
