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Rafael Martínez Ruiz
USA
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“I wish my art to break free of all myths of artistic modality.”
Working with non-traditional materials has been more than a passion for artist Rafael Martínez Ruiz, born and residing in Puerto Rico. With a degree in Fine Arts from the School of Fine Arts in San Juan, P.R., Rafael left no stones unturned to create new artistic modalities with his multi-faceted world of expressions. He believes that the concept behind an artwork matures with the perfect blend of design and aesthetics, tools and materials, technique and experimentation in the right proportion, be it a painting or a sculpture. For more than three decades, he served as an art teacher and activity coordinator for the Puerto Rican government. Now fully dedicated to his artistic pursuits, Rafael also finds music to be his repose.
COLILLA | Other
$14,500
39 X 24
Colilla meaning stub.
The main concept is : take a look at the shapes of some nothing special like a cigarette, but that will be beautifuly expresed through a non- traditional material.
Rafael feels that in visual arts, artistic integration plays a crucial role in shaping the work as it evolves. This concept isn't confined to a specific style, as the creative process often generates a diverse range of ideas to reach its final artistic mission. Rooted in a primarily visual rather than philosophical foundation, visual arts aim to make an impact while remaining eye-pleasing and easy to interpret for both the eye and the mind.
CHALLENGE | Other
$20,000
57 X 36
Is a challenge in a creation of this artwork , because was not easy build the perfect balance between each section , for keeping standing.
As an artist in his training process, Rafael was greatly influenced by the works of other artists, from the point of view of verticality and technique. He later worked on these inspirations that contributed largely in his extensive handling of different non-traditional materials, such as PVC pipe and PVC panel, both in sculpture and painting. He was intrigued by the works of innovators like Alexander Calder (USA) for metal sculpture, Antonio Navia (P.R.) for non-traditional materials, Omar Rayo (Colombia) for optical illusion painting, Lope Max Díaz (P.R.) for sculptural painting, and Andrés Rodríguez (P.R.) for mastery in techniques and composition.
“To me, an artistic work involves passion, devotion, intellectual obsession, verticality, and gravity.”
Yes, according to an intuitive artist like Rafael, a great deal of emotion, intellectual and physical effort goes into an artwork. He follows the great Dutch artist M.C.Escher who thinks that art is not a mere philosophical concept, but a perfect management of space, ideas and design. And, Rafael too believes that he was destined to create art in a totally new artistic modality and embedded form. To achieve the end, he has been an avid seeker who constantly works to reach the point of maturity with a lot of passion, devotion and intellectual obsession.
WINDOW | Other
$20,000
48 X 48
The most important message in this painting is the optical 3D illusion, in a flat surface, among of the pleasure for the mind.
This painting also is a 3D optical illusion on a flat surface, and this artwork is for hanging in a wall. This art piece is some different into a painting concept.
OASIS | Acrylic
$20,000
46 X 45
According to him, artistic execution is not a bed of enchanted roses, but hard work that is carried out with the greatest devotion, love, strength , interest and seriousness. Hard work and dedication of an artist can make every product a work of art in the viewer’s impression, turning every hurdle into a marvel. That is one of the wonders of the creative process and the culmination of a work of art, being enjoyed first by the artist in the formative stage and later embraced by the general public.
“Art does not necessarily have to have a very deep philosophical message, but rather, it should be something seductively visual as long as it is not offensive or vulgar, but it must be sophisticated and innovative in its style.”
“When an original artist gets involved in the creative process, one falls into similar but never the same trends and concepts and uses the materials available in the artistic world. In my case, I have gravitated towards experimenting with concepts and materials like the non-traditionals.’’
He chose unconventional themes and materials to dictate the fate of his art. After his graduation in fine arts (1982), Rafael started experimenting with concepts and materials which were out-of-ordinary, combining the traditional ones. He started with something unique as PVC plumbing pipes with different thicknesses (3, 4, 6 inches) molded with heat, perforated (sometimes ) and painted with acrylic paint and spray enamel, cut into different shapes. These experimental pieces of art were destined for walls, pedestal, ceiling, and floor, combining wood, pvc panel, etc.
TRANSFORMATION OF A CILYNDER | Other
$19,500
63 X 10
This art piece is literally transformation of a cilynder, because his body was a cilynder,, with a colorful and a beauty touch..
Is ideal for create a diptico with another artpiece named Symbiosis.
In his first individual exhibition (1997) in Puerto Rico, Rafael presented this innovative concept of art with the use of wood (mahogany panel) as well as in his sculptures because the pvc panel did not exist then.
SYMBIOSIS | Other
$19,500
64 X 11
Symbiosis in this artpiece, is the perfect integration between background and figure. Also you can look this concept in the artpiece named Transformation of a cilynder, this two artpiece is ideal for a diptico.
Rafael considers all of these creative efforts as his particular contribution to the world of sculpture in general, even though it has not been recognized as such. He conceptualizes his works with the pvc panel as a novel concept for wall paintings, with endless possibilities of improvising on the traditional painting style, cutting it with different shapes and ideas, not limited to the square or rectangle.
VORTICE is energy translated to an ultra modern painting and diptico.This artwork is a perfect example between wall and art piece, ideal for any wall color.
VORTICE | Acrylic
$23,000
47 X 58
“An artist who has tendencies towards deep themes is accepted as long as he supports it with his execution and not only with the text.”
CROSSING | Acrylic
$23,000
35 X 45
Crossing is a one of a kind sculpture painting. This is a face A. This unike art work has one title in one face or side , and another title on side B, that you will be in the next picture.
The concept and philosophy behind an artwork according to Rafael is the artistic execution of styles and techniques. It is well understood and appreciated for an artist to be inclined toward profound themes, provided they convey their ideas through their execution rather than relying solely on text or the theory of it—what Pablo Picasso referred to as "literature."
Crossing landscape is the side B of Crossing , an unike sculpture painting with two title.
CROSS LANDSCAPE | Acrylic
$23,000
39 X 24
For a visual artist like Rafael Martínez Ruiz, fine art doesn’t necessarily have to convey deep philosophical messages, rather it is more about weaving a visual spell. It should seduce the senses of the viewers with elegance and originality, pushing boundaries without crossing into vulgarity—sophisticated yet daring in its innovative stance, creating a ripple in the hearts’ of the admirers for a long spell of time.
AGAINST THE CURRENT |Acrylic
$19,500
39 X 24
This very rare painting is a one of a kind art piece. This is an enswer to the traditional canvas painting , but always with fine taste.
“Artistic execution is not a bed of enchanted roses, but hard work carried out with sincere intentions - a bit of love and technique to get along."
Rafael Martínez Ruiz
@arteprisma30
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