Pura Vida
Galerie DrosteConrad Ruiz
Info: Nearly 500 years ago, the Danza de los Voladores, a ritualistic dance originating from the indigenous peoples of Central Mexico, emerged as an aerial plea for rain. With dancers spiraling from a towering 100-foot pole in costumes representing earth, wind, fire and water, the ceremony served as a celebration of—and meditation on—abundance and scarcity. But for Los Angeles-based painter Conrad Ruiz, this ancient tradition is not just cultural history, it’s also a metaphorical framework for Pura Vida, his latest exhibition at Galerie Droste, Düsseldorf. The Los Angeles-based artist has spent nearly two decades honing a painting practice that is both omnivorous and multidimensional, feeding on the chaos of modern image consumption, then reverse engineering its harshness via delicate watercolor applications. (…)
