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Artist Sandra Ramos: A Foot in Miami and a Foot in Havana

Artist Sandra Ramos:  A Foot in Miami and a Foot in Havana

 

 




Introduction to Sandra Ramos.  0:46 sec.  Interview:  Raymond Elman.  Videography:  Lee Skye.  Music: UP Paolo Pavan Pasqualino Ubaldini

 

 




Trumpito. 2018. Written & Directed by Sandra Ramos.  Animation, Editing, & Music by Yoel Alegre Lago.   4:48 min.

 

“I am in the Havana studio of artist Sandra Ramos. Her work is fabulous. She also has a studio in Miami, and you have to record a video interview with her,” texted my old friend Judy Richland — a graphic designer, movie producer, and educator.

It wasn’t until I visited Ramos in her studio at Bakehouse Art Complex in Miami that I realized this was the same woman whose art I had been admiring in museum and gallery exhibitions.

SANDRA RAMOS (b. 1969) is a Cuban contemporary painter, printmaker, collagist, and installation artist who explores nationality, gender, and identity in her work. She is best known for works featuring her character Ariadne, who is composed of a self-portrait and an appropriated portion of an illustration from Alice in Wonderland. Ramos currently lives in Miami, and serves as an artist in residence at Bakehouse Art Complex and a contracted exhibition artist at The Fountainhead. She is also a renowned curator in Cuba, and won a national award for her curatorial work on the exhibition Le Huella Múltiple (Multiple Fingerprint) in 2003, from the Consejo Nacional de las Artes Plásticas (CNAP) in Havana.

The videos below are organized by Success Factor and run between 30 seconds and 5 minutes. Click on any video. You must be connected to the Internet to view the videos.

 

 

EXPOSURE TO BROAD INFLUENCES: 0:48 sec.




Growing up in Cuba, what was your earliest memory of art of any discipline?

 

INSIGHT & INSPIRATION:   0:52 sec.




When you were growing up, was the architecture of Havana already in a state of decay?

 

SEIZES OPPORTUNITIES:  1:02 min.




Do you remember when you first started to feel passionate about art?

 

RESILIENCE:  1:41 min.




As an artist, I always felt welcome in every class of society. How are artists treated in Cuba?

 

INSIGHT & INSPIRATION: 2:57 min.




Where did you go to school, and what did you learn that still informs you today?

 

CREATES A UNIQUE PERSONAL BRAND:  4:08 min.




Describe the arc of your career.

 

SERENDIPITY: 0:57 sec.




How did you meet Nina Menocal, and how did she come to represent your art?

 

CRITICAL THINKING:   3:06 min.




Talk about the themes, symbols, and images that appear in your work.

 

CRITICAL THINKING:  3:51 min.




When did you first come to the United States? When did you start living in the U.S.? And how has being in the U.S. impacted your work?

 

SERENDIPITY:  1:09 min.




How did you become aware of Provincetown and the Fine Arts Work Center? When did you go there? And how did you become aware of Michael Mazur?

 

INSIGHT & INSPIRATION:  1:38 min.




What was your first impression of Provincetown and why do you want to keep coming back?

 

EMPATHY:  1:16 min.




Do you observe people looking at your work at an exhibition?

 

CREATES A UNIQUE PERSONAL BRAND:  1:39 min.




How do you judge your own work? What are your criteria for a successful outcome?

 

SERENDIPITY:  1:16 min.




What is the role of accident in your work?

 

INSIGHT & INSPIRATION:  2:24 min.




You have created your work in so many different ways. Are there one or two series that are your favorites?

 

OVERCOMES CHALLENGES TO SUCCEED:  1:38 min.




Describe a challenging situation that you have encountered with a successful outcome.

 

UNDERSTANDS ARTISTS’ NEEDS:  1:24 min.




I’ve heard people say that the best art is produced during times of hardship, but the positive impact of support from institutions and collectors should never be underestimated.

 

CREATIVE FLEXIBILITY:  1:46 min.




Murray Zimiles, a master printmaker, artist and educator, wrote a story for ArtSpeak titled “A Requiem for Traditional Printmaking,” in which he argues that digital printing can replicate almost every element of traditional printing.

 

CRITICAL THINKING:  2:04 min.




What do you find most interesting about the Miami art community?

 

COMMUNITY VALUES: 0:52 sec.




What are your thoughts about having a studio at the Bakehouse Art Complex?

 

CREATES A UNIQUE PERSONAL BRAND:   1:05 min.




Although your work is very eclectic, do you feel like your work fits in any particular genre of art?

 

EMPATHY:  0:59 sec.




What’s your favorite movie?