Rising stars – meet three talented women you need to know about.
Inspired by the annual Women of Influence awards, celebrating those making a difference, we salute three talented women you need to know about
A single illustration shared on Instagram catapulted Wellingtonian Ruby Jones onto the global stage. Created in response to the Christchurch mosque attack, it depicted two women embracing – one a Muslim wearing a hijab – and was captioned: “This is your home and you should have been safe here.”
A huge response culminated in Time magazine commissioning Ruby to illustrate its 1 April 2019 cover. Ruby says the experience changed her life. “I went from having my work seen by my family and friends to having it seen by thousands of people around the world, which is something I wasn’t ever prepared for. ”
Now she has produced a book of her illustrations titled All Of This Is For You, on sale in November. Royalties will be donated to I Am Hope, which provides free counselling services for young adults.
Ruby, who is self-taught, says the book is a simple commentary on life. “The aim is to be able to open it on any given day and find a page that speaks to you.”
Her path to fame echoes that of so many other women. “There just came a day where I realised it was okay to charge for my work rather than giving it away for free. For years people made me feel that because it was something creative and something I loved doing, shouldn’t I just want to do it for free?”
She lists other female artists including Lorraine Sorlet, Marta Oktaba and Liana Finck, along with her mother Lynette Jones, as women who have inspired and influenced her. “My mum has a really beautiful way of looking at the world. She’s taught me how to find the precious, golden moments in life and to treasure them.”
See more of Ruby’s work on Instagram at instagram.com/rubyalicerose.