The following biography is from George Krevsky:

Ruth Gikow was born in the Russian Ukraine, the daughter of Boris and Lena Gikow. When she was five, her family emigrated to the Lower East Side of New York. With a zest for living she never lost, she overcame the language barrier quickly and survived the teeming streets, diverting her tough cronies with chalk drawings on the sidewalk. She won distinction for her artwork at Washington Irving High School, which had one of the strongest art departments in New York City.

At age 17, Gikow entered Cooper Union Art School and studied under two well known regional artists, Austin Purvis, Jr. and John Steuart Curry. She continued her studies under Raphael Soyer ...