Ruth Allen attended the Canberra School of Art, where she studied under Klaus Moje, Elizabeth McClure and the late Stephen Procter.  Ruth graduated in 1993 and took on world travel; her destinations included Japan, the United States and New Zealand.  Throughout this time, her focuses were on developing her skills with hot glass, networking, and expressing herself with the material.  Ruth was a CGCA fellow in 1994 and has also had a residency at the Canberra School of Art in 1993.  In 1995, Ruth returned to her birth country of New Zealand and, with her business partner, Vivian Bell, established a hot glass studio, Gloria.  The studio dissolved in early 2000, enabling Ruth to return to Australia and resume more artistic practice. 

Ruth has attended and conducted workshops, including teaching at Diffuse Studio in Sydney, Australia.  She has exhibited recently at GIG Gallery in Sydney, Yarra Sculpture Gallery in Melbourne, and is part of a nationwide touring exhibition, Ranamok Glass Prize.  She has won several distinguished awards, including the Pat Carrigan Grant for documentation, and scholarships to Pilchuck Glass School.  She is currently enrolled in a Master of Fine Arts degree, in glass and sculpture at Monash University, Melbourne,  Victoria.