Though Ramirez has addressed political, social, economic and aesthetic boundaries for years, this is the first time his art has been exhibited in Texas. In his recent work, the artist applies first-hand experience of the polarities that characterize communities to more general and philosophical comments about political injustice and cultural miscommunication on a global scale. The four pieces that comprise
To Whom It May Concern: War Notesare about war-just one possible result of misunderstanding and disagreement between cultures.
By employing art to condemn inhumane acts of war and violence, Ramirez is part of a distinguished lineage of artists such as Jaques Louis David, Francisco Jose de Goya and Pablo Picasso, who share compassion for the politically oppressed and the compulsion to create imagery that exposes subjugation.
Ramirez is in the privileged position of being both an outsider (as a citizen of Mexico) and an insider (since he spends almost as much time in the U.S. as he does in his home country). From his position-and in the age of globalization- Ramirez is critical of U.S. activities abroad, not just in the border region; disdain for what he sees as the abuse of power is poignantly expressed in his work.
This full color publication accompanied the exhibition To Whom It May Concern:War Notes by Marcos Ramirez Erre. It contains dozens of high quality photographs of the installation and the artists individual works and three full length essays on the social, political and artistic impact of ERRE's work.
Kate Bonansinga is the Director of the Stanlee and Gerald Rubin Center for the Visual Arts at the University of Texas at El Paso. From 1991-1999 she taught art history at the Oregon College of Art and Craft in Portland, Oregon, where she also served as director and curator of the College s exhibition gallery. There she developed an interest in contemporary art that resides at the intersection of materials-oriented fine craft and concept-driven fine art. She serves on the editorial advisory board for Artl!ies Magazine, Houston, TX and as a national art peer for the Office of the Chief Architect of the United States. During 2005 she was a mid-career fellow at the Smithsonian Institute for the Interpretation and Representation of Latino Cultures in Washington, D.C., and in 2006 she participated in the Getty Center s Museum Leadership Institute.
Mike Davis is a Professor of History at the University of California, Irvine and a well-known author and social commentator. He has written a number of books that explore the racial, economic, enviornmental and class tensions in urban america.
Eva Diaz Eva Díaz is a New York-based art historian, curator, and critic. Her writing has appeared in Art in America, Modern Painters, Time Out New York, and numerous exhibition catalogues.
