About Ruby

Ruby Lerner is the founding Executive Director of Creative Capital, an innovative arts foundation that adapts venture capital concepts to support individual artists. Under her leadership, Creative Capital designed a comprehensive support system for artists that combined money with advisory support. It committed more than $40 million in financial and advisory support to 511 projects representing 642 artists. This commitment helped grantees leverage nearly $100 million in additional support. She stepped down from the organization in June 2016 to pursue consulting work and independent research. 

In 2017, Lerner became the inaugural Senior Policy Advisor to the Herberger Institute at Arizona State University and Senior Advisor to the Patty Disney Center for Life and Work at CalArts. In 2018 she began serving as an Advisor to the Cultural and Art program at the Open Society Foundations, assisting in the design of the new Soros International Arts Fellowship. She continues to work with the program fellows.   

  • Prior to Creative Capital, from 1992-1998, Ruby Lerner served as the Executive Director of the Association of Independent Video and Filmmakers (AIVF) and as Publisher of the highly regarded Independent Film and Video Monthly. Having worked regionally in both the performing arts and independent media fields through the 1980’s, she served as the Executive Director of Alternate ROOTS, a coalition of Southeastern performing artists, and IMAGE Film/Video Center, both based in Atlanta. In the late 1970s, she was the Audience Development Director at the Manhattan Theatre Club, one of New York's foremost nonprofit theaters.

    A native of North Carolina, Lerner worked in the state's Visiting Artist Program following graduate work in theater at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. Her undergraduate degree is in comparative religion from Goucher College. In 2016, Lerner was awarded honorary doctorate degrees from the Maryland Institute College of Art and Maine College of Art, and in 2020, she received a third honorary degree from Moore College of Art and Design in Philadelphia.

    In her nearly 50 years in the arts, Ms. Lerner has written and lectured extensively, including at Harvard Business School (in conjunction with a Harvard Business School case study on Creative Capital) and for the University of North Carolina’s Entrepreneurship Program. She gave the 2016 Purchase College Jandon Business of the Arts Keynote, and has spoken at numerous schools across the nation, including CalArts, RISD, Columbia, Oberlin, Harvard, the University of Texas at Austin, Syracuse University and Arizona State University. She has frequently presented on arts issues at conferences and summits, including the Grantmakers for the Arts conference, the National Innovation Summit for Arts & Culture, IdeaFestival in Louisville and the Three Million Stories Conference at Arizona State University.

    Lerner was a 30th Anniversary ArtTable Honoree (2011). She is recipient of the Art in General Visionary Award (2016), the John L. Haber Award from the University of North Carolina (2009), the Catalyst Award from the National Association of Artists Organizations (2007), the BAXten Award from the Brooklyn Arts Exchange (2007), a Creative Leadership Award from the Alliance of Artists Communities (2005), the Artist Advocate Award from the Alliance of New York State Arts Organizations (2003) and a Special Citation from Artists Space for her support of individual artists (2003).

    Shortly after leaving Creative Capital, she was appointed to the Board of Directors of the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. She also serves on the boards of Eyebeam Art and Technology Center and Light Industry.  Her Advisory Board work includes New INC at the New Museum, Creative Capital, The Center for Artistic Activism, Missing Movies, The Ackland Art Museum at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC, and Arts Everywhere, also at UNC-CH.

  • “Ruby’s everlasting gift to the arts ecosystem is her vision of supporting the whole artist through transformative grantmaking, tailored professional advisory services, and meaningful community building. Creative Capital and countless important organizations have come to life because of Ruby’s radical, unwavering commitment to the individual artist.”

    – Christine Kuan, President & Executive Director, Creative Capital

  • “The world of Ruby Lerner is always NEW NEW NEW! Unable to resist the call of the future, Ruby has also, always, made that distant shore feel like home. So, you ask: how can a backwards-looking archive reflect our Ruby? Breadcrumbs helps us find our way by marking our past, and if Ruby can’t compile and preserve the road she has mapped to help artists shape a better future for us all, we may not be able to find it again.”

    –Stephen Reily, attorney, entrepreneur and civic leader in Louisville, Kentucky

  • “Ruby Lerner’s impressively wide range of skills and astute strategies are unparalleled, as is her dynamic comprehension of evolving media and their implications in the arts, which she fearlessly uses to help artists realize their vision.”

    – Lynn Hershman, Artist

  • “Dear Ruby, You’ve expanded my notions of art, philanthropy, and organization. Your doing your job so well made it so much fun to do mine.”

    –Jeffrey Soros, Film Producer

  • “Ruby is a dervish of nurturing support and connector of people and ideas.”

    –David Wilson, Filmmaker and Co-Founder, True/False Film Festival

  • “Thank you Ruby for creating a new world and endless possibilities!”

    –Colleen Keegan, Artist Advisor and Advocate

  • “Ruby has helped to nurture so much life-affirming work while profoundly changing the lives of so many of its makers. With warmth, generosity, and enthusiasm, she has scattered the planet with her stardust.”

    –Chris Doyle, Artist and Co-Founder, Reach Projects

  • “Ruby Lerner is a remarkable thought-leader who is a guiding force for arts communities around the world. Her guidance through this timeless collection is an essential centerpiece and framework for professional development in every sector of the arts. Ruby's ground breaking lectures and writings serve as mappings, connective tissue for community building and required reference for artists to continue to live and sustain their lives now and into the future.”

    –Sharon Louden, Artist, Educator, Advocate for Artists, and Editor of the Living and Sustaining a Creative Life series

  • “Ruby Lerner’s re-envisioning of arts philanthropy, and her tireless advocacy, has been transformative for us and countless others. She is the best friend and champion an artist could hope for, and we feel blessed to have her in our lives.”

    –Tia Lessin & Carl Deal, Oscar-nominated filmmakers

  • “Ruby Lerner is a giant, a legend, and a treasure in the arts. She has grown more organizations, been at the center of more debates, and changed the lives (for the better) of more artists than probably anyone out there. I know the life-changing part is true for me. I got a grant from the Creative Capital Foundation, which Ruby founded, in 2001, and I wouldn't have been able to make my first feature doc The Weather Underground without it. I literally am the filmmaker I am today because of Ruby. And there are hundreds of other artists out there who also owe their careers in large ways to Ruby and her work. She is a true friend and ally of artists and has dedicated herself to helping us make art and make the world a better place for 50 years. She, and her archive, are a treasure-trove of lived history and life lessons and long haul perspective. The world is an infinitely richer place because of Ruby Lerner and we all can learn multitudes from her.”

    –Sam Green, Documentary Filmmaker

  • “The importance of preserving the archive of Ruby Lerner goes beyond documentation. It’s a blueprint and map of how supporting the arts and other endeavors can thrive with innovation, risk taking and create long lasting impact.”

    –Paul Rucker, Artist, Composer, Musician

  • “I was in the Whitney Biennial in 2007 and Ruby came to the lunch that was being hosted by my gallery, Susanne Vielmetter. It was a nice event and by the end of it Ruby and I caught up for just 3 minutes and she asked me what I was up to. I shared with her that I was restarting this art project called White House Project and I gave her a bit of info about it. By the end of the day Ruby had emailed a detailed business plan outlining all the steps to get my project started. We went on to use and build on that plan and had great success in creating an internationally recognized art project. She continues to be there as a friend and mentor and is that for so many others.”

    –Edgar Arceneaux, Artist, Educator and Director

  • “Ruby is deservedly well known for cultivating and spurring creativity from so many for many years. But, as evidenced by her archive of writings, she’s also a fighter and a clear eyed strategist who understands the importance of radically rethinking many of the systems in our country that are failing us.”

    –Michael B. Keegan, Co-chair, Artists for the American Way and former President of People For The American Way

  • “Ruby Lerner is the person that built bridges that could span any flood and reach solid anchorage for all of us working in the contemporary art fields for decades. Her staggering impact has changed our landscape and practices, and anyone who has worked with this woman knows that from that moment on, we check ourselves against the innovation standard: ‘What would Ruby do?’”

    -Kristy Edmunds, Director, MASS MoCA

  • “Ruby Lerner is a national cultural treasure. Her vision and tireless work has enabled artists and arts workers to do their best work, take risks, innovate and contribute toward a vibrant inclusive country.”

    -Colleen Jennings-Roggensack, Arizona State University Vice President for Cultural Affairs and Founding Board Member, Creative Capital

  • “I met Ruby when I received a Creative Capital grant seven years ago. In those seven years, I have returned to her as a thought partner, idea generator, art counselor and cultural historian. I have felt so privileged to have direct access to such an intellect. She is a connector at the highest level. She has an ability to connect projects of the past with the present, in a way that is always generative. The way of organizing her wealth of knowledge and experience into an archive is as innovative as it will be invaluable. I don’t think there will be anyone who visits more frequently than me.”

    -Titus Kaphar, Artist, Founder & President, NXTHVN, New Haven, Connecticut

  • “Ruby Lerner is an icon. Her vision, strategic expertise and infectious enthusiasm have changed the lives of two generations of individual artists in every field. Creative Capital is THE model for individual grants for artists. Ruby changed my life specifically. I met her when I was a young curator, and she immediately included me in Creative Capital’s retreats, where I studied her unique approach–inspiring artists and those cultural workers in the ecosystems which will allow them to thrive. When she left Creative Capital, I was luckily the first to hire her as a consultant to help me develop the Soros Arts Fellowship at the Open Society Foundations. She mentored three cohorts of artists from around the globe, many working in authoritarian or insecure contexts, on creating sustainability for their practices. When Ruby Lerner is in the room, she is most certainly changing someone’s life in real time.”

    -Rashida Bumbray, Curator; Choreographer; Former Director, Culture and Art, Open Society Foundations; Curator, Loophole of Retreat: Venice

  • “I met Ruby just after I had made a huge life leap to New York City. It was the perfect time to find such an energizing and supportive mentor at my new job. Under Ruby’s leadership at Creative Capital Foundation I watched upclose what it meant to live a bold life as a woman, arts leader, and builder of institutions and support systems for artists. She was unafraid to break things in service of moving us all forward. When I became a first-time Executive Director years later, I would often ask myself, ‘WWRD?’ That self-interrogation strategy always opened up a new and needed path out of any problem I was having. In the nearly 20 years since we first met, Ruby continues to inspire me and so many others to be our boldest selves. Our field and the world is better for it.”

    -Kemi Ilesanmi, Arts Leader

 UBY IS…

  • “Ruby’s everlasting gift to the arts ecosystem is her vision of supporting the whole artist through transformative grantmaking, tailored professional advisory services, and meaningful community building. Creative Capital and countless important organizations have come to life because of Ruby’s radical, unwavering commitment to the individual artist.”

    – Christine Kuan, President & Executive Director, Creative Capital

  • “The world of Ruby Lerner is always NEW NEW NEW! Unable to resist the call of the future, Ruby has also, always, made that distant shore feel like home. So, you ask: how can a backwards-looking archive reflect our Ruby? Breadcrumbs helps us find our way by marking our past, and if Ruby can’t compile and preserve the road she has mapped to help artists shape a better future for us all, we may not be able to find it again.”

    – Stephen Reily, attorney, entrepreneur and civic leader in Louisville, Kentucky

  • “Ruby Lerner’s impressively wide range of skills and astute strategies are unparalleled, as is her dynamic comprehension of evolving media and their implications in the arts, which she fearlessly uses to help artists realize their vision.”

    – Lynn Hershman, Artist

  • “Dear Ruby, You’ve expanded my notions of art, philanthropy, and organization. Your doing your job so well made it so much fun to do mine.”

    –Jeffrey Soros, Film Producer

  • “Ruby is a dervish of nurturing support and connector of people and ideas.”

    –David Wilson, Filmmaker and Co-Founder, True/False Film Festival

  • “Thank you Ruby for creating a new world and endless possibilities!”

    –Colleen Keegan, Artist Advisor and Advocate

  • “Ruby has helped to nurture so much life-affirming work while profoundly changing the lives of so many of its makers. With warmth, generosity, and enthusiasm, she has scattered the planet with her stardust.”

    –Chris Doyle, Artist and Co-Founder, Reach Projects

  • “Ruby Lerner is a remarkable thought-leader who is a guiding force for arts communities around the world. Her guidance through this timeless collection is an essential centerpiece and framework for professional development in every sector of the arts. Ruby's ground breaking lectures and writings serve as mappings, connective tissue for community building and required reference for artists to continue to live and sustain their lives now and into the future.”

    –Sharon Louden, Artist, Educator, Advocate for Artists, and Editor of the Living and Sustaining a Creative Life series

  • “Ruby Lerner’s re-envisioning of arts philanthropy, and her tireless advocacy, has been transformative for us and countless others. She is the best friend and champion an artist could hope for, and we feel blessed to have her in our lives.”

    –Tia Lessin & Carl Deal, Oscar-nominated filmmakers

  • “Ruby Lerner is a giant, a legend, and a treasure in the arts. She has grown more organizations, been at the center of more debates, and changed the lives (for the better) of more artists than probably anyone out there. I know the life-changing part is true for me. I got a grant from the Creative Capital Foundation, which Ruby founded, in 2001, and I wouldn't have been able to make my first feature doc The Weather Underground without it. I literally am the filmmaker I am today because of Ruby. And there are hundreds of other artists out there who also owe their careers in large ways to Ruby and her work. She is a true friend and ally of artists and has dedicated herself to helping us make art and make the world a better place for 50 years. She, and her archive, are a treasure-trove of lived history and life lessons and long haul perspective. The world is an infinitely richer place because of Ruby Lerner and we all can learn multitudes from her.”

    –Sam Green, Documentary Filmmaker

  • “The importance of preserving the archive of Ruby Lerner goes beyond documentation. It’s a blueprint and map of how supporting the arts and other endeavors can thrive with innovation, risk taking and create long lasting impact.”

    –Paul Rucker, Artist, Composer, Musician

  • “I was in the Whitney Biennial in 2007 and Ruby came to the lunch that was being hosted by my gallery, Susanne Vielmetter. It was a nice event and by the end of it Ruby and I caught up for just 3 minutes and she asked me what I was up to. I shared with her that I was restarting this art project called White House Project and I gave her a bit of info about it. By the end of the day Ruby had emailed a detailed business plan outlining all the steps to get my project started. We went on to use and build on that plan and had great success in creating an internationally recognized art project. She continues to be there as a friend and mentor and is that for so many others.”

    –Edgar Arceneaux, Artist, Educator and Director

  • “Ruby is deservedly well known for cultivating and spurring creativity from so many for many years. But, as evidenced by her archive of writings, she’s also a fighter and a clear eyed strategist who understands the importance of radically rethinking many of the systems in our country that are failing us.”

    –Michael B. Keegan, Co-chair, Artists for the American Way and former President of People For The American Way

  • “Ruby Lerner is the person that built bridges that could span any flood and reach solid anchorage for all of us working in the contemporary art fields for decades. Her staggering impact has changed our landscape and practices, and anyone who has worked with this woman knows that from that moment on, we check ourselves against the innovation standard: ‘What would Ruby do?’”

    -Kristy Edmunds, Director, MASS MoCA

  • “Ruby Lerner is a national cultural treasure. Her vision and tireless work has enabled artists and arts workers to do their best work, take risks, innovate and contribute toward a vibrant inclusive country.”

    -Colleen Jennings-Roggensack, Arizona State University Vice President for Cultural Affairs and Founding Board Member, Creative Capital

  • “I met Ruby when I received a Creative Capital grant seven years ago. In those seven years, I have returned to her as a thought partner, idea generator, art counselor and cultural historian. I have felt so privileged to have direct access to such an intellect. She is a connector at the highest level. She has an ability to connect projects of the past with the present, in a way that is always generative. The way of organizing her wealth of knowledge and experience into an archive is as innovative as it will be invaluable. I don’t think there will be anyone who visits more frequently than me.”

    -Titus Kaphar, Artist, Founder & President, NXTHVN, New Haven, Connecticut

  • “Ruby Lerner is an icon. Her vision, strategic expertise and infectious enthusiasm have changed the lives of two generations of individual artists in every field. Creative Capital is THE model for individual grants for artists. Ruby changed my life specifically. I met her when I was a young curator, and she immediately included me in Creative Capital’s retreats, where I studied her unique approach–inspiring artists and those cultural workers in the ecosystems which will allow them to thrive. When she left Creative Capital, I was luckily the first to hire her as a consultant to help me develop the Soros Arts Fellowship at the Open Society Foundations. She mentored three cohorts of artists from around the globe, many working in authoritarian or insecure contexts, on creating sustainability for their practices. When Ruby Lerner is in the room, she is most certainly changing someone’s life in real time.”

    -Rashida Bumbray, Curator; Choreographer; Former Director, Culture and Art, Open Society Foundations; Co-curator Loophole of Retreat at the 2022 Venice Biennial

  • “I met Ruby just after I had made a huge life leap to New York City. It was the perfect time to find such an energizing and supportive mentor at my new job. Under Ruby’s leadership at Creative Capital Foundation I watched upclose what it meant to live a bold life as a woman, arts leader, and builder of institutions and support systems for artists. She was unafraid to break things in service of moving us all forward. When I became a first-time Executive Director years later, I would often ask myself, ‘WWRD?’ That self-interrogation strategy always opened up a new and needed path out of any problem I was having. In the nearly 20 years since we first met, Ruby continues to inspire me and so many others to be our boldest selves. Our field and the world is better for it.”

    -Kemi Ilesanmi, Arts Leader

Ruby is available for speaking engagements and guest appearances. To inquire, contact her here.

For existing engagements, please make use of the bios and headshots below to suit your needs. Each headshot comes in multiple formats — click the download button to download them all.

☆ ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ☆

This archive would have never become a reality without the deep commitment, persistence, rigor and creativity of Heather Bhandari. She has been my partner every step of the way, and I feel so fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with her over the past year. Heather has made a challenging process an absolute joy.

Her contribution doesn’t stop there. She managed to rally an incredible group of her former students to the project. I am so grateful to Eve O’Shea, Sylvia Atwood, and Matt Warren Bruinooge for their contributions to the archive.

I am particularly proud of this website, which is a product of the enormous talent of someone else in Heather’s orbit—Claire Schlaikjer. Claire brought so much energy and invention to the site’s design, and constantly surprised us with her “translations” of our sometimes not fully formed ideas. Thank you. You more than fulfilled my dreams for the site.

I would also like to thank two of my former Creative Capital colleagues: Jenny Gill and Emily Stoddart. Jenny helped me organize my Creative Capital materials. Her work served as the precursor of this entire project. Emily designed beautiful personal business cards for me as I was retiring, and her compelling logo design served as visual inspiration for this website. Thank you both.

Ruby Lerner, 2023