Portfolio
About
CV
Statement
Home is both a tangible place and an abstract concept. By pondering the social implications of home, I interrogate the politics of belonging. Who is able to keep their home, what does it mean to make one, and how can we accept the homes we have outgrown? This work exists in the realm of survival in the 21st century; particularly the manifestation of the mind, body, and environment as something constantly at odds. Within this exploration, my family’s archives serve as a northern star. Tangible photographs and notes communicate familial mythologies. Stories spoken by trusted elders contextualize our struggles within a vast human experience.
Alternatively, I study how these romanticised histories are formulated in a familial memory. In the recounting of these stories, particulars become filtered, creating an idealized or dramatic folklore. This romantic perspective informs the visual quality of my work: leaving enough detail to be interpreted without forming a complete understanding. Ephemeral hues of blue access dream and memory states; tactile materials like wool recall the richness of childhood. As these images are reconstructed line by line in the weaving process, the images undergo another material transformation; losing detail and absorbing new meaning at once. This process mirrors the accessing of memories: fragmented and unperfect. But these imperfections become repositories of humanity, my own flaws and the flaws that made me. Through the weaving process, I am able to reconcile with the irreconcilable. As these various conceptions of home are constructed and questioned, my priority remains tapping into our innate human tenderness.
Alternatively, I study how these romanticised histories are formulated in a familial memory. In the recounting of these stories, particulars become filtered, creating an idealized or dramatic folklore. This romantic perspective informs the visual quality of my work: leaving enough detail to be interpreted without forming a complete understanding. Ephemeral hues of blue access dream and memory states; tactile materials like wool recall the richness of childhood. As these images are reconstructed line by line in the weaving process, the images undergo another material transformation; losing detail and absorbing new meaning at once. This process mirrors the accessing of memories: fragmented and unperfect. But these imperfections become repositories of humanity, my own flaws and the flaws that made me. Through the weaving process, I am able to reconcile with the irreconcilable. As these various conceptions of home are constructed and questioned, my priority remains tapping into our innate human tenderness.
Biography
Jiselle Ramírez is a visual artist born and raised in Southern California. She is currently a senior at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago where she focuses on Fibers, Illustration, and Ceramics. She is an active member of the School of the Art Institute’s Residence Hall Exhibitions Committee where she collaborates to curate and organize bimonthly shows. Ramírez has exhibited in a multitude of exhibitions across Chicago and Los Angeles including Woman Made Gallery’s 26th International Open and Junior High’s CommUnity respectively. She is the recipient of the SAIC Recognition Scholarship and the Travel Merit Scholarship.