ELI RUHALA

As an artist who grew up in rural Texas, my interests have always drawn me to the intersection of blue collar and artistic labor. On project sites I’d witness my step-father push around material quickly and almost mechanically, whilst in the studio I could end up spending an hour on a square inch of canvas. The environments on sites that were filled with machismo versus spaces which exercised art jargon offered little reference for what it would look like to belong to both worlds. In my practice, building materials that are regularly applied instinctively are thought of and applied as if it were tubed paint. Fine art making processes such as modeling and glazing are in conversation with instinctual acts of labor tying back to the medium’s main applications.

Working with materials whose main function is to establish interior space, I then use the figure as a vehicle for contemporary narratives. A portrait of my partner holding a baby might be carved along with a bill that prevents us from adopting. The materials I use each offer new possibilities such as the matte thick body of joint compound or the rich artificial coloring of house paint. The marrying of living subjects with construction material brings into question the reach of our own stories in time using the materials we live in as a point of reference.