Sandra Ramos

Sandra Ramos Lorenzo was born in Havana, Cuba, to two native Cuban parents, and she now lives in Miami, Florida. Although Ramos doesn't come from a family of artists, she was nonetheless still heavily inspired by painter Gloria González who was a close friend of Ramos’ grandmother. Ramos has two siblings still living in their family home in Miramar, Havana. Her sister Liane, who has degrees in curatorial work, gives tour of Ramos’ Havana studio and runs small xylographic workshops as her assistant. Ramos' brother Ruben also helps to run printmaking workshop at the studio.

Ramos’ first attempt to enter the United States was in 2004 for her first solo gallery exhibition in the U.S. at the Fraser Gallery Georgetown. However, her visit was forbidden by the U.S. department of state because “in a bid to increase pressure for democratic change in Cuba by drying up the flow of hard currency to the Castro regime, the U.S. government had tightened restrictions on travel by Cuban artists to the United States.”

Ramos’ works have been incorporated into the permanent collections of many museums, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Fuchu Art Museum in Japan, Thyssen Bornemisza in Vienna. Ramos' work is also a part of the Rodríguez Collection at the Kendall Art Center in Miami, Florida. Ramos’ works featuring her character Ariadne have sold for as much as 833% above their estimated value.

Another common theme in Ramos’ piece is the use of water that emphasizes a physical separation to express a sense of isolation and to, as well as demonstrating the fluidity in her life.

Mayer Fine Art Gallery in Norfolk, Virginia, calls Ramos's work “groundbreaking” and says she is “amongst the first to challenge and expose the harsh realities of Cuban life. By addressing forbidden issues such as mass migration, the plight of Cuba’s raft people, racism in Cuban society and the inequalities of Cuban life, Ramos found a voice through her art that has brought her worldwide fame.”

In 2017, an exhibition featuring Ramos’ work, “On the Horizon: Contemporary Cuban Art,” at the Perez Art Museum Miami received criticism from Miami's Cuban exile community for its inclusion works by artists who depict the island fondly before it even opened. They reconciled this by inviting guests to leave comments negative or positive in English or Spanish at the museum.

In February of 2014, following much of her family and friends, Ramos moved to Miami, Florida to work as an artist in residence at The Fountain Head Art Studios, and, in September of 2016, she began a second residency at the Bakehouse Art Complex also located in Miami, both of which she still maintains.

In 2014, Sandra Lorenzo Ramos Studios released the book Sandra Ramos: bridging the past, present and future, which was the first major English publication about Ramos, authored by the artist with contribution from Diane W. Camber, Jack Rasmussen, Hamlet Fernández, Holly Block, American University, and the Bass Museum of Art.

2013- Invited Artist. La Biennale di Venezia. Venice, Italy.

2012- Invited Artist. XI Habana Biennial. Havana, Cuba.

2003- Nacional Award for the Curatorial Work on the exhibition La Huella Múltiple (Multiple Fingerprint) granted by the Consejo Nacional de las Artes Plásticas (CNAP). Havana, Cuba.

2002 - Award. Best exhibition of the year to La Huella Múltiple (Multiple Fingerprint), Gallery 106 Flatbed Press. Austin, Texas, USA.

1997- Cuban National Cultural Award. Havana, Cuba.

Ramos attributes 1993 as the first official year of her career when she had her first solo exhibition “Manera de matar las soledades” at el Centro de Desarrollo de las Artes Visuales (CDAV) in Havana, Cuba. Ramos' career as an artist began during Cuba's "Special Period." This period began in 1990 and was a result of the dissolution of the Soviet Union (USRR) and the embargo that the United States imposed on Cuba.

Cuba's “Special Period” was marked by a declining economy that negatively affected the quality of life of all Cubans. During this period of time, many people left Cuba, including her then-husband who left in 1992. In reference to this experience, Ramos stated, "It was a very hard time for me… I had to decide whether I was going to follow him or not." Ramos decided to stay. The personal experiences that derived from these hardships are what propelled the content of her work, which communicated a sense of isolation, grief, and loss. In 2003, the artist hinted at the way in which her experiences of living in Cuba affected her art by saying, "My work is too related to my life there and my life would change a lot if I left." In 1993 Sandra Ramos became a teacher at the ISA - Higher Institute of Art, a job that she held up until 1998. Since then, she has continued her involvement in the art world. According to her website, “…she has being Curator of the 7 editions of La Huella Múltiple event and other Cuban Contemporary Art exhibitions. She imparted conferences and workshops in International Institutions and Universities as The CUNY Post Graduate Center NY, Wake Forest University, George Mason University Washington, The University of Havana, L' Ecole deux Beaux Arts Paris, Barbican Center in London, The School of the Fine Arts Museum in Boston, Lowe Art Museum, Florida University, Fuchu Art Museum, Tokyo, among others.

1991- Award. International Contest of Small Prints Interchange (Premio del Concurso Internacional de Intercambio de Pequeñas Estampas, CIPE). Havana, Cuba.

1988 - Award. National Saloon for Artistic Teaching (Premio Salón Nacional de Enseñanza Artística) Academia de San Alejandro. Havana, Cuba.

From 1984 to 1988, Ramos pursued a high school diploma at the prestigious Elemental School of Visual Arts 20 de Octubre at San Alejandro Art Academy, which was famously attended by Fidel Castro and Jose Martí, and from 1988 to 1993 she worked on attaining a degree in printmaking the Superior Institute of Art in Havana where she was instructed by notable artists like José Bedia, Leandro Soto and Carlos Cárdenas, among others.

Sandra Ramos (born January 10, 1969) is a Cuban contemporary painter, printmaker, collagist, and installation artist who explores nationality, gender, and identity in her work. She is best known for works featuring her character Ariadne, who is composed of a self-portrait and an appropriated portion of an illustration from Alice in Wonderland. Ramos currently lives in Miami, Florida, and serves as an artist in residence at Bakehouse Art Complex and a contracted exhibition artist at The Foutain Head Art Studios. She is also a renowned curator in Cuba, and she won a national award for her curatorial work on the exhibition Le Huella Múltiple (Multiple Fingerprint) in 2003 from the Consejo Nacional de las Artes Plásticas (CNAP) in Havana, Cuba.[1]