Welcome to:
www.ryan-ballard.com
EXHIBITIONS 2010
Mixed Media 2010 @ City Hall in Slidell, LA: Jan 16 - March 19 (my piece "Pink Shotgun Birdhouse" won best of show) www.slidell.la.us
Check out the story on the Mixed Media show at Nola.com
1st Annual Print Show at Louisiana Artworks: Three of my Faux Teauxs are in this exhibition, April 9 - May 9 www.louisianaartworks.org
Kinetica at the Candle Factory: April 24 - May 8
I am directing the design and installation of the 9th Ward Renaissance Community Mural Project 2010 www.mfrancisgallery.com
Architectonics of New Orleanian Identity @ The Preservation Resource Center 923 Tchoupitoulas, NOLA: This series will go on display March 1st. Opening Reception: Friday, April 2, 6pm - 8pm www.prcno.org
Check out the story on Architectonics of Identity at Nola.com
Art Melt @ The Louisiana State Museum 660 North Fourth Street, Baton Rouge, LA: July 15th - August 30th www.artmelt.org
Salon des Refuses Currated by Stuart Keeler @ the Americans for the Arts Half Century Conference, Baltimore, MD
Saint Tammany Art Association @ The Main Gallery, Covington, LA: July 17th - August 14th
Artists Act Now (Fundraiser for Gulf Aid) @ The Foundry, NOLA: July 30th
The September Juried Show @ The Acadiana Center for the Arts in Alexandria: August 27th - October 9th
My No Place Like NOLA series of Architectural Funky Birdhouses are on display in the New Orleans Botanical Gardens through winter 2011 www.funkybirdhouse.com
Welcome to my virtual gallery. This site showcases my diverse creative endeavors and artistic experiments. Browse thru the various project pages by clicking the menu links. This site contains a variety of work across several disciplines: metal sculpture, experimental puppetry, short films, digitally manipulated photography, mixed media assemblages, ceramics, and more.
High quality prints are available in a range of sizes for any of my 2D work (Faux Teauxs, Capitalist Pig Series, Zombie Family Vacation, etc.). I also build birdhouses, create metal sculptures, and customize bicycles by commission. Please contact me if you have any questions about my work/pricing or an idea for a project.
Artist Statement
I’m interested in creating art that fosters community and promotes positive change in the social and political realms. In my work, I explore post-modern identity issues, the essence of language, consumer culture, entertainment, and human impact on the environment. I believe that my strongest work has a ritual function, making my art objects essentially “useful” in a psychological/magical sense.
A decade of extensive international travel has had a powerful influence on my personal and conceptual development. I have a dark sense of humor and an anti-authoritarian rebellious streak. In my work, as well as in my life, I tend to question not only the sacred cows of human society, but also the nature of art/craft (I absolutely don’t believe there is a difference).
I am fluent in a variety of traditional sculpture media. In addition, I often use found objects and a variety of experimental media, such as DIY electronics, fabric, resins, audio, and video. My work has a sensibility that is a fusion between the techno-tribal aesthetic of Burning Man and the voodoo shrines, southern folk art, and handmade costumed street life culture of New Orleans. Many of my pieces incorporate electric lights and interactive parts. I tend towards using heavy black outlines, bright colors, and intricately decorated surfaces in all of my work regardless of media. I’m interested in violating the boundaries between kitsch, craft, and fine art.
The art objects I create appear playful and humorous at first, but when the viewer looks deeper they realize that they are full of double meanings, twisted games, and challenging social, political, and personal implications. By using glossy, jewel-like surfaces decorated with whimsical, kitschy detritus I want provoke feelings of desire in my viewer and draw them in. But underneath this surface glitz are deeper themes of raging dissatisfaction with consumer culture and the status quo.
My work is like candy that is full of razor blades.
Autobiography and Resume
I grew up in the Ozark Mountains in rural Missouri and spent my childhood in the Pentecostal church participating in exorcisms, speaking in tongues, and attending faith healings. My teenage years were full of trouble. I spent my twenties roaming the earth before moving to New Orleans and establishing myself as an artist.
My art is my first love and travel still runs a close second. I am an avid adventurer and have traveled solo as well as led expeditions to the far ends of the earth. Spending time in the wild places recharges and inspires me. I tend to work furiously and intensely on my art when I am at home (in my New Orleans studio), and my travels give me a healthy break from my work.
The range of international experiences I have collected has helped to inform and shape my worldview by giving me a unique perspective on American consumer culture. My adventures include: sailing the Nile river, climbing in the Himalayas, hitch hiking across Australia, teaching ESL in South Korea, living and working on an off-shore tugboat in the Gulf of Mexico, guiding cross-country camping/hiking/rafting trips throughout the US, leading sea-kayaking adventures in Alaska, and leading teen adventure trips in Belize, Mexico, Tanzania, Thailand and Peru.
The course of study I undertook during my BFA provided a strong foundation for my career as an artist. I learned the value of craftsmanship and explored a wide variety of media and techniques in sculpture, painting, drawing, ceramics, and mixed media. Classes in advertising and graphic design taught me how to communicate effectively, and have proved valuable when applied to my work.
Over the last decade I have continued to explore new media and refine my ideas and techniques. My artwork has continued to evolve, as I learn new tricks and incorporate new materials into my pieces (including DIY electronics, fabric/ faux furs, cast plastics, resins, and video). I’m interested in violating the boundaries between kitsch, craft, and fine art, in my work.
My artwork has received critical acclaim and has been featured in publications including Art in America. I exhibit frequently and organize community art projects (including the Sock Monkey Project and community murals). My work can be found in galleries, museums, and private collections throughout the world. I have also been commissioned to create public art for both the City of New Orleans and Denver, Colorado.
One of my important projects of the last several years involved developing and performing live large-scale puppetry and experimental theater, as well as creating video productions (including TV commercials and music videos) with my puppetry company, Razzamataz Productions. This work informed my fine art in several beneficial ways. I learned how to use all sorts of repurposed and salvaged materials to create large (13ft tall +), lightweight, functional, durable, puppets/props that are built for easy transport and assembly.
I currently teach for the Talented Visual Arts program in New Orleans, where I live in a historic home with my wife Meghan and our two dogs, Rocket Sauce and Sophia Maria.
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