New Video Art and Light-Photo Work Get Premiere Exhibition
Artist Troy Ramos unveiled two brand new artworks at the first ever City Arts Connections show last month in Battle Creek. His new works were a video art installation called “Passing Time” and a work for photos and light cold “This Is Itself”. These works were part of a group show with five other Michigan-based artists and took place over two weeks at the historic Eclectic Gallery.
“These two works are mostly unconnected but have some carryover qualities for sure,“ said Ramos. “You can see the similarities in the photos and video I took of myself, of course. But they also share some similar themes and genetic makeup that emanated from where I made them and the concept behind each.“
The video work “Passing Time” shows a split screen of the artist facing himself, throughout all three ‘parts’ or ‘acts’, but instead of hearing the artist speak, what we hear is a sound-art-piano-work the artist created. “What I have to say in these videos isn’t important to anyone but myself. And that idea reflects what you think anyway; that you might see me somewhere in society, maybe even interact with me. But 9 times out of 10 you’re probably not really listening anyway or at least you won’t remember what I said,“ says Ramos. “So my silence is all you really needed anyway. But the sound art works you hear, which are three tracks from a piano album of abstract sound art I released in 2017 called “Twelve Stars”, is kind of the reverse of that. It’s a a reflection of how I see you or the world. I try very hard to listen to people and have good interactions. But I’m probably not listening to you either. So instead of hearing your words I’m only hearing or thinking of artwork I’m creating or that I want to create. In other words, I’m just as lost in my own world looking at you as you are looking at me.”
Ramos also says he doesn’t want to project his ideas about what any of his works are “about“. “These works are themselves. I create them and show them to the public. There might be a story behind creating them or an explanation of the concept behind them, or something about an ‘inspiration’, but once they get shown public, they become themselves. That’s their meaning.“
What about other peoples’ interpretations?
“I love, absolutely love, hearing other people describe what they take for my works or the significance they see in them. That’s their experience. It isn’t my place to try to control that. I hope every person has their own unique ideas about every work I create. Why wouldn’t their interpretation be just as valid as mine?,” Ramos says. “ once the work leaves my studio, I don’t project meaning onto the work because that would only suffocate the actual meaning of the work, which is: itself.“
City Art Connections is a brand new art series of exhibitions which brings together artists from several different cities in Michigan to show their works and connect with each other. This exhibit and its concept was also created by Troy Ramos, who organized it as the founding director and chief curator of the arts organization ArtHouse 43. “I really wanted to create an artistic platform where different cities in Michigan could get to know each other, culturally speaking, through artists who are based in or from the cities,“ adds Ramos. “Each city in Michigan has a lot of different efforts, supporters and artists working together to elevate the arts in their respective cities. But I thought it might also be interesting and beneficial to try to connect those people and their artistic circles to the people in other cities doing the same thing. I think I could really open up new dialogue and opportunities that come from people simply getting together to talk about art and share their ideas and experiences.“
Young art admirer (and niece of artist) Isabelle Ramos enjoys the minimalism and concept
Ramos says he would like to make City Art Connections an annual exhibition, one that would rotate to different cities. “I think it would be great to have different cities involved each year, both in terms of the participating artists and where the exhibitions take place,” Ramos said. “I want Detroit to get to know Grand Rapids, and Ann Arbor to hang out with Kalamazoo and Lansing to get to know Battle Creek. If we can get enough people behind this concept, enough people to support it, I think there’s some real potential in this idea behind City Art Connections.“
This exhibition was sponsored in part by the WK Kellogg Foundation, the Battle Creek Community Foundation and BC Vision. “I can’t thank the sponsors enough. Their support means everything and everyone needs to recognize that they are true patrons of the arts. Their generous support is contributing to the cultural vibrancy, not just of one city or one artist, but the entire state and the artistic culture we’re trying to improve.“
To support the continuation of City Art Connections, you can donate by going to www.arthouse43.com/donate. You can also visit that website to contact Troy directly. And remember to support them on social media everywhere @arthouse43 and Ramos’s Instagram @troystond.
