Ralph Almeida Bio
Ralph Almeida is a Brooklyn-based, multi-disciplinary artist of Portuguese descent. His paintings, drawings, collages, and surface designs have been shown widely and installed in public and in private residences. Almeida’s work draws from nature (animal, horticultural and landscape motifs), the history of decorative arts (from Ancient Egypt to William Morris to Marimekko), and Modernism (Miro, Calder, Klee, and others). New York architecture and history has a significant influence on his work.
Almeida began in the 1980s as a textile designer working for the Style Council and Sweetpea, creating patterns used by brands such as Jams. While studying at the Fashion Institute of Technology in the early 1990s, Almeida gained quick recognition for mixed media pieces that played off art history, recasting “masterpieces” with themes of ethnicity and sexual identity. “For Races,” a reimagining of the Mona Lisa as the female Creator, was exhibited at the Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition. “Vincit Omnia Amor,” a gay reworking of the Madonna and child, appeared at Manhattan’s Leslie Lohman Gallery. “Homo Gothic” and “The Embrace,” gay reclamations of American Gothic and Gustav Klimt’s The Kiss, showed at Connecticut’s Silvermine Artists Guild.
Into the early 2000s as a member of the Art Group and International Artists Support Group, Almeida exhibited acrylic paintings, large-scale totems, and works on paper globally, including in New Delhi, at the Russian Embassy, and at D.C.’s Museum of Contemporary Art. In 2000, he won a prestigious commission from the Department of Cultural Affairs for his “MooMaid,” a part of the NYC Cow Parade. The piece later sold at auction for $16,000.
In 2004, Almeida moved to Los Angeles, where he taught elementary school art through a program established by the Getty Museum. California’s sun-drenched landscapes heightened his use of color and invigorated his interest in ceramic tiles, as influenced by his Portuguese background.
Almeida’s tile work and stained and fused glasswork, blending motifs from nature, antiquity, and pop-surrealism, led to multiple exhibitions and large-scale residential commissions. Splitting his time between Los Angeles and New York for the next several years, Almeida began creating proprietary tiles for the Tenement Museum and the Eldridge Street Synagogue. In 2015, he had a solo exhibition at Huz Galleries in San Pedro, California.
Most recently, Almeida has created a line of seasonally inspired masks for Covid-19 safety; a mosaic housewares line; a textile collection for home, bath, and office in collaboration with Society 6; and an ongoing series of illustrations for the poetry website Global Poemic. As always, he moves fluidly from fine to decorative arts, through a multiplicity of media with an eye toward installation and utility.
Ralph’s projects, interviews, merchandise, website and VR gallery can be seen at: https://linktr.ee/RaffaArt
Resume:
Background: 1990 -2021
Fashion Institute of Technology: NY, NY, Studied Textile Design, Printmaking, Oil Painting, Art History, Computer Graphics, and Painting on Silk.
Lighthouse Stained Glass: Venice, CA: Studied Stained Glass Technique
Aardvark Clay Studios: Las Vegas, NV: Studied Fused Glass
Urban Glass: Brooklyn, NY: Studied Introduction to Hand Blown Glass and Neon
Mouse Ceramics Studio: Hand Building Pottery
Selected Group and Solo Exhibitions:
2015 Huz Galleries: “Mosaic Persuasion”, San Pedro, CA.
2014 Artist Project Cherry Grove: “66th Annual”, Fire Island, NY
2011 Bolivar Gallery: "Nature's Way", Santa Monica, CA.
2010 Blue 7 Gallery: “Pico Art Walk”, Santa Monica, CA.
2010 Electric Lodge: "Venice Solo", Venice, CA.
2010 Seidman Gallery: “Group Show”, Santa Monica, CA.
2009 The Basement Gallery: Wawi Amasha and Ralph Almeida, Silver Lake, CA.
2009 World Market Center: “Recent Works”, Las Vegas, NV.
2008 Gumbo: “Artwalk”, NY, NY.
2008 The Hell Gate Social: “To Live and Paint in Astoria”, NY, NY.
2007 Gumbo at Atlantic Antic: “Paintings & Tiles”, NY. NY.
2006 Bolivar Gallery: “Landscape & Mythology”, Santa Monica, CA.
2005 T.Heritage Gallery: “Group Show”, Santa Monica, CA.
2004 Pagoda Artworks: “On the West Coast”, Santa Monica, CA.
2003 Studio 91: “Open Studio”, NY, NY.
2003 The Howl Festival: “Paintings and Prints”, NY, NY.
2002 Williamsburg Art & Historical Center: “Unity Canvas”, NY, NY.
2001 Culture Project: One Man Show “For the Birds”, New York, NY.
1999 Abraham Lubelski Gallery: “Subculture Presents”, New York, NY.
1997 LaMaMa La Galleria: “Universal Diversity”, New York, NY
1995 Leslie-Lohman Gallery: “Universal Diversity 3”, New York, NY
1993 Silvermine Artists Guild: “Art of Northeast”, New Canaan, CT.
1992 Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition: “Spring Show”, Bklyn, NY.
Selected Museum Exhibitions:
2002 Russian Embassy Cultural Center: “Expressions of Culture” Washington, DC.
2001 Museum of Contemporary Art DC: “I.A.S.G.” at MOCA, Washington, DC.
1998 Lalit Kala Academy “I.A.S.G.” in India, New Delhi, India
1997 Museum of Contemporary Art DC: “I.A.S.G.” at MOCA, Washington, DC.
Honorarium:
2000 Cow Parade: “Moomaid” Public Art Program, New York, NY.
Articles and Publications:
2020 Global Poemic: Illustrations for Kindred Voices. Online digital magazine.
2020 Portuguese American Journal Interview: “On Bringing Azulejos to a New Light” By M. Accardi
2015 LA Art Party: Huz Galleries Presents “Mosaic Persuasion” Featuring Ralph Almeida
2014 Fire Island Chronicle: Review 66th Annual Arts Project
1998 Lalit Kala Akademi, Catalog “I.A.S.G.” in India
1995 Albany Times Union: Review “Art Group: First Outing” at Warren Street Gallery
Virtual Tour Program:
2020 Turnstile Tours presents “Pop Surreal Art and Tile Demo” with Ralph Almeida
Artist Bio & Resume
At Gaudi's Park Guell in Barcelona
