Speaking figuratively
This story was featured in the March/April 2020 issue of Southwest Art magazine. Get the Southwest Art March/April 2020 print issue or digital download now–then subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss another story.
AS A YOUNG boy growing up in Brazil, Gustavo Ramos loved to draw, and his passion got him thinking that maybe he’d pursue a career in architecture someday. He never imagined that he’d become an award-winning figurative painter; back then, a fine-art career wasn’t even a notion in his mind. Then, when he was 15, Ramos moved with his family to the United States. The change was startling for the teenager, who didn’t know any English when he arrived at his new high school in Arizona. “It was shock treatment,” Ramos recalls now, a decade later. “I had to depend a lot on observing body language when trying to communicate with people.”
It proved to be a seminal time for the budding artist, whose careful observations of people’s expressions, gesticulations, and postures motivated him to depict the figure in graphite and other dry media like pastel, charcoal, and Conté. “It gave me an edge in depicting those subtle bodily gestures that help tell a story,” he says. Meanwhile, Ramos also received encouragement from his high-school art teacher, who helped him realize his potential to become a professional fine artist. “That opened my eyes,” says Ramos, who went on to study drawing and painting at Southern Virginia University, with classical realist Jeff Hein, and at the Florence Academy of Art. Determined to learn the classical techniques of the old masters, Ramos exclusively worked from life during that time. Now, when using reference photographs he has taken of his models, says Ramos, “I can conceptualize form. I’m able to look at the flat surface of a painting and picture space inside that surface.”
At 26, the Phoenix-area artist is already snapping up top accolades for his sensitive, contemporary portrayals of the figure in oil. “My high-school self would just be thrilled about where I am today, almost in disbelief,” says Ramos. “But most of the time, I’m just obsessed with where I want to be.” In works like INFINITY—a painting starring his wife that touches on the mystery of life after death and the concept of eternity—he has been exploring storytelling techniques that convey more than just someone’s likeness. For guidance, he often studies Rembrandt van Rijn’s evocative portraits. “Rembrandt created the sense of a real person who had real experiences,” says Ramos. “That’s something I try to do with my work.” —Kim Agricola
representation
www.gustavoramos.art
This story was featured in the March/April 2020 issue of Southwest Art magazine. Get the Southwest Art March/April 2020 print issue or digital download now–then subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss another story.
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