Ruhtenberg was born in
Riga, Latvia to Hanne Helmsing Ruhtenberg, and
Jan Ruhtenberg. She and her two brothers grew up in Latvia, Germany, and Sweden, with the family moving to Berlin in the late 1920s after Jan received a scholarship to Berliner Technische Hochschule. In May of that year, she exhibited 15 paintings at the
Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center. before moving to
Iowa with her husband, Jules Kirschenbaum, whom she had met in 1952 and who taught at
Drake University. In 1954, one of her paintings was acquired by the
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. She exhibited art at the
Museum of Modern Art three times: in 1955, 1956, and 1962. In 1957 she illustrated a children's book,
Straps the Cat, which was written by Claudia Lewis. Ruhtenberg died in
Issaquah, Washington in 2008. == Style ==