Painter, Writer, Filmmaker, Zumba Instructor, Passionate Cook
1. Please introduce yourself:
My name is Gabriel Gustavo Ramos.
2. What kind of Art do you do?
Artistically, I express myself through multiple mediums: painting, writing, filming, dancing and cooking.
3. What are some of your accomplishments you feel proud of?
Recently I became a Zumba instructor. I feel very proud of that because I have always loved to dance. When I was in college, I wanted to take flamenco lessons. For several semesters, I would contemplate it but was always afraid to walk through the classroom door. I never did. 20 years later I was able to cross that door. I usually teach in the mornings and I love beginning my day by dancing. It has given me a new center from which to navigate from. I put a lot of thought in the playlist that I do. My goal is always to tell a story and have the opportunity to feel free in my body. To flow between masculine, feminine, graceful and brute forces. I feel centered after class and eases the flow of ideas.
I feel very proud of the albondiga soup (meatball soup) I have been making. I surrender completely to the process. I feel like a witch brewing a potion that will ensnare your senses. I play records when I cook. I let all the aromas carry me off to the past they remind me off or the people that showed me how. I feel like a sculptor too when it comes to molding the meat.
I feel proud of my most recent 1 min Instagram post that caught attention, which took me 30 hours to edit. I have always hid behind my art but now I feel compelled to be part of it.
In terms of film, I have been doing more production design/art direction. I love telling the story of a character or informing a scene through props.
In terms of painting, I'm very proud of the proscenium arch I created for the play "To Be Dali". It took me about a month to do and I was given creative liberty to inject all of me in it.
4. What are some of your biggest struggles being an artist?
My biggest struggle is to feel proud and confident. It's all well and said in an email or resume but in reality I'm riddled with insecurities. But also I feel like I dipped my fingers in to many pies and I feel master of none. Sometimes I feel like I invest more time in thinking about a project and not enough time creating it. Some of it has to do with the reality of surviving. I have 2 restaurant gigs that pay the bills. I spend most of my days at work daydreaming of how to spin my experience into an artistic expression, but when I'm done with work I'm so drained. Then I feel guilty for not having the discipline to muster the energy to continue creating when I get home.
5. How do you overcome these struggles?
The best remedy is to look for inspiration in other artists. For example, last week I saw Sasha Velour's "Smoke and Mirrors" show. It was brilliant, genius and profound. She began with a celestial image. An angel on a swing lip syncing to Annie Lennox's "Precious." She had a halo that she broke to transform into horns. Lucifer fell from the sky. There it was. On stage my two natures. Ambivalence. During one of her monologues she said something that resonated with me. "I can't tell a linear story. Growth is not linear. It's circular. You don't grow by assassinating you previous incarnations. You grow by embracing them. Growth is circular. You go round and round to find out how elastic you can be to withstand all you personalities."
6. What are you currently working on?
I am currently working on how elastic I can be. On giving equal time to all the ways I want to express myself. Also "To Be Dali" is coming back to the stage I would like to invite everyone to see this masterpiece and get a close up look at my proscenium arch.
7. What do you feel is your mission as an artist?
My mission as an artist is the same as it was when I was a kid. To elicit an emotional response from whomever takes a peek. To entertain. To make the viewer feel what I felt when I saw my first Pedro Almodovar film. Not alone. To inspire. To always linger on the border of masculine and feminine and to always approach things with unusual madness.
DM THROUGH IG OR FB
TO ENJOY ONE FREE ZUMBA CLASS
AND MENTION "CRE8"
Favorite Quote:
"The art of living is neither careless drifting on the one hand,
nor fearful clinging to the past on the other. It consists in being sensitive to each moment, in regarding it as utterly new and unique, in having the mind open and wholly receptive."
- Alan Watts
CONTACT:
INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/ggustavoramos/
ANYBODY WHO'D LIKE TO HELP MAKE A DIFFERENCE: https://www.onetoyatatime.org/donate