Ruiz’s work examines the relationships between the vastness of the universe, our immediate known world, and the intimate details of our interior landscapes.
Her sculptures act as relics of these mental excursions and invite viewers to interpret them with their own personal narrative and point of view. Predicated on both material and metaphysical investigations, over the years Ruiz has developed several bodies of distinct works including; Beacons, Volumes, Wells and Land Samples, among others. The mirrored wall works serve as wormholes or entry points to these cerebral landscapes and the freestanding and wall mounted sculptures act as objects from these landscapes. Some act as tomes containing foreign information; others as stand-ins for familiar domestic objects but with fundamental idiosyncrasies. In contrast, the small concrete works act as mementos of internal thoughts documented, solidified and hardened into handheld relics of sentiments past and future. The most recent series, Beacons’ hand-carved wooden forms are outfitted with bands of neon and embedded with an assortment of gemstones, geodes, organic matter, and found objects, including abalone mollusk shells and ammonite fossils. Each Beacon, distinct in its style and shape, balances the wonders of the natural world with industrial materials such as concrete, epoxy, illuminated tubes, and commodity plastics. The result is a suite of whimsical yet complex structures that examine the dichotomy between visual perception and spiritual elevation, a con- cept that is reflected in the Beacons’ title, which refers to both a navigational aid and a symbol of hope.
