Mary "Ruth" Rideout

Age 91 of Yarmouth and Halifax, passed away on January 27, 2020. Born in North Sydney to Herbert & Ethel (Hackett) Morton, her childhood was spent in Cape Breton, Halifax, and Yarmouth, N.S. She spent her adult years in Yarmouth, married to the late Dr. Vernon Rideout. In 1949 she received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Mount Allison University in Sackville, N.B., studying under Alex Colville and Lawren P. Harris. She produced art from a young age and mastered various media, including oil, acrylic, pastel, charcoal, printmaking, stone rubbing, sandcasting, and pottery. She taught art to adults, children and youth in Yarmouth for many years. She was well known for her excellent portraits. Her work has been exhibited widely and is in the permanent collections of the Maritime Art Association, the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, Owens Gallery, and Acadia University Art Gallery. She continued to work from her apartment at Parkland at the Gardens in Halifax until her late 80s and had an exhibition of her work there in 2018. Ruth was an adventurer, always ready to take on new challenges. With Vern, she travelled to many parts of the globe. She took up scuba diving and was a member of choral groups and an actress with local theatre and musical groups. Following a major stroke in her early 60s, she immediately started to learn to draw and paint using her non-dominant hand and became equally facile with both hands. Her determination and resolve served her well, allowing her to remain in her own home until recent years, even though wheelchair-bound. She is survived by her sister Jean Davis of St. John’s, Nfld., children Catherine (Harry) Thurston of Tidnish Bridge, Bruce (Rosemary) of Oxford, Doug (Pam) of Upper Tantallon, & Jim (Heather) of Yarmouth, her grandchildren, Meaghan Thurston, Brian, Luke, Jake, Samantha, & Katrina Rideout, Rebecca Rideout-Pothier, and Alex, Cameron, & Steven Bell as well as eight great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews. Donations may be made to the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, Western Branch (Yarmouth), or Visual Arts Nova Scotia, or Heart & Stroke Foundation. A celebration of Ruth’s life will be held at a later date. For on-line condolences, visit www.jasnowfuneralhome.com