Melinda Ruth Rushing is a sketch artist and print maker who uses mixed media to create pieces that comment on the black experience. Rushing believes art can heal, encourage, and expose. With each piece, she aims to evoke emotion, so the viewer is able to connect with the subject matter. Rushing completed a minor in Studio Art at the University of Houston during her undergraduate studies in 2010 and in 2020, Rushing began her art career in her native state, Texas, as she completed her doctorate in public health from the University of Texas Health Science Center. In 2020, Rushing displayed for the first time in the Black Excellence Expo Group Exhibition curated my Britt Cherell, was commissioned to create an original piece for the Black Wall Street Board Game Collectors’ Edition, was commissioned to create the art used in the short film Ama, and was 1 of the 3 finalists in Chicago based Gallery 19 Meed4: Power of Identity competition. Following the competition, Rushing’s piece, Ankara Body: Uncovering, was selected to be in Gallery 19’s Best of the Year Group Exhibition curated by Gallery 19 owner Tony Reyes in 2021.

In August 2021, Rushing relocated to Detroit Michigan after being recruited for a Public Health Postdoctoral position at the University of Michigan. While working full time as a research fellow, Rushing continued to pursue her art career and displayed the piece Ankara Body: Uncovering in the 2022 Still Bonded Group Exhibition curated by Jonathan Harris, a nationally recognized visual artist. In August of 2021, Rushing joined the Detroit Fine Arts Breakfast Club. Since joining, Rushing’s work has been added to several established and emerging art collections that include Henry Harper, Edward and Karen Ogul, Harold Braggs, Misha McGlown, Paul and Daphne Curtis, Jonathan Harris, Tracey Williams, Morgan Smith, George Briggs, and David Mays. Additionally, her first linocut print, Coming of Age, is on display at MAC Galleries owned by James E. McKissic. Currently, Rushing’s piece Don’t Run is being displayed in the Swords into Plowshares Gallery’s The World We Need Group Exhibition. Rushing is also working with Munson Steed in partnership with Irwin Gallery on a commission project to create original linocut designs and prints for the honorees of the Women with Superpowers Award Gala.