Biography

Ruth Rodriguez’s work is semi-autobiographical and reflective of three generations of Dominican women in America, specifically their grandmother, mother, and themselves. The grandmother came to this country to work in textile/lingerie factories in the mid-1960s and worked heavy hours stitching bras and moving fabric. Her experiences raising the artist and the mother’s early exposure to art history as a child have inspired many of the motifs and poses seen today. The work questions the way women are represented in Western art history and the self-awareness that comes with being seen as an object and the “conquered”. Their mediums include print, collages of their old paintings, fabric all purchased from the same store in the Bronx, along with scans of the grandmother’s passport, voter registration cards, and other biographical materials. Portions of hospital discharge papers are quietly glued to the canvas, bus tickets left at the door after a breakup, photocopies of a lover’s article of clothing. All things that, although very personal, are collaged in because of the right shade of pink or the texture a collage needed. They are interested in mass consumption pop culture and how it’s divulged through a Dominican American lens. More recently, they have begun making paintings and works about the Exhausted woman, a woman who has found herself in a society that has expanded her roles with no reward. A “good” woman is expected to work full time, be a good homemaker, mother, and keep the weight off all with little to no appreciation. In her quest for women’s equality, she is found tired and still a victim of the male gaze. Not to mention the long-standing art history of Odalisques, Venus, and nymphs.