Ignite, acrylic, 3×4 feet

Riya Devi-Ashby was born in 2001 in Silver Spring, Maryland. In 2023, she received her BA in Studio Art from Wesleyan University with a concentration in painting and mixed media installation. As an emerging artist, Devi-Ashby has already been featured in juried group exhibitions such as “Creative Confluences” at Towson University and “Intricate Layers” at Motor House, and she completed her first solo exhibition ‘Veni, an Unweaving’ in 2023. She is also classically trained in Kuchipudi dance by guru Nilimma Devi, and her extensive performing experience informs her visual art practice. This year (with the support of a Hulley Foundation Special Project grant) she is creating a series of fine arts objects in conversation with original choreography by the Sutradhar Dance Company. The work from this project, entitled ‘Yogini’, will be exhibited at venues such as the Sandy Spring Museum, Black Box Theatre in Silver Spring, and the Sutradhar Institute. Devi-Ashby currently lives and works in the Washington DC area. Her work is currently exhibited at Spectrum Gallery in Centerbrook, Connecticut.