Today we’d like to introduce you to Ronny Rose.
Hi Ronny, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I’ve always needed to make things, so in some capacity art and creation has been part of the continuum of my life. I grew up acting in plays and writing poetry, and then studied audio in college and would paint at night. So the need to create was always there, but t it took a while to start to find any semblance of unity in my work.
In my early twenties, I began to experiment with photography and that really changed everything. It taught me the language of seeing, and but also formed the beginning of a process for me to better express how I experienced the world around me.
Today my work is an aggregate of photography, filmmaking, and visual art.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
For me, it’s never felt smooth. Haha. For years I really envied the people who seemed to know their voice early on and could just focus on working hard to get it out there. My path was shall we say less… linear.
As a young artist in any medium, there is a huge pressure to have a voice. In effect, to brand yourself, but sometimes it can take years to find that style. I knew I needed to make things, but what medium seemed to continually escape me. I felt like I was perpetually trying on shoes that worked but never quite fit. This resulted in every few years I effectively started over. I was a sound artist, then a mix engineer, then a painter, then a documentarian, then a journalist, then a writer, a cameraman, and then a filmmaker. In effect, I was constantly reinventing myself so people never knew what kind of work to expect of me, which professionally, I suffered for while because it’s hard to build long-term relationships with clients or outlets if no one can get a feel for who you are and what your work is.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Today I’d define myself as a filmmaker, photographer, and visual artist, which I feel like some people would still say is too much!
In terms of what that looks like, I would say my photography practice and visual art practice play heavily off each other. I work in a highly limited color palette. Exclusively black and white with my photography and grayscales with occasional red accents in visual art so the two definitely speak to one another.
Then my films are the arena I explore more complicated emotional landscapes and visual languages.
Regarding what I’m most proud of right now. With filmmaking, my most recent film Darlings premiered earlier this year at IFS Los Angeles Film Festival and is showing at the Lone Star Film Festival as well so that’s a big honor.
Now, within the realm of my photo a visual artwork, I’m launching the first edition of a limited printing zine combining unreleased stuff from my photo and visual artwork. It’s called Fragment. That I will be selling that on my website as well as in a few indie bookstores around the country.
And I also started a monthly newsletter about art stuff which has been pretty fun.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
Growing up, I’d say I was an intense kid. I think everything with me always happened at high volume.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.ronnyrose.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ronnyrose
- Other: https://www.ronnyrose.com/newsletter
