Elena Yu

Ruffin Gallery and Visiting Artist Coordinator


Elena Yu is the Ruffin Gallery and Visiting Artist Coordinator. Elena oversees the Ruffin Gallery’s marketing and exhibition schedule, including exhibitions by visiting artists, faculty, and students. She also supports Studio Art’s robust program of visiting artists. 

Elena received a BA in Art from UCLA in her hometown of Los Angeles. She moved to Charlottesville in July 2023 from Joshua Tree, CA, where she has worked as an interdisciplinary artist and arts organizer since 2016. Elena’s work weaves together many mediums and intentions including textiles, performance, sculpture, social practice, arts education, community building and collaborations. Prior to her work at UVA, Elena worked in arts programming and communications at High Desert Test Sites, Arts Connection, and Headlands Center for the Arts, as well as in arts education at the Hammer Museum and Groundwork Arts.