Pedro Ruiz
Colombian, b. 1957
Pedro Ruiz's work occupies itself with social and political issues that affect his country Colombia and countries worldwide as well. Nature and the concept that it is a force that we cannot control and must live in harmony with, is ever-present in his works. Ruiz has developed four fundamental series through paintings and installations: Love is in the Air, Desire, Displacements, Gold, Natural Gold, Desire and Colombiana Light.
Pedro Ruiz is today one of Colombia’s most important artists. Knighted by the French Government with the Order of the Arts and Letters and Goodwill Ambassador to Unicef for his strong commitment to translating his artistic messages into social projects, Ruiz has the ability of connecting with the public’s minds and hearts. In a poetic and aesthetic manner, this artist addresses political and social issues that have affected him, his country and the world: social displacement, the spraying of drug crops and its effect on nature, aggressive mining and destruction of nature by multinational companies and its effect on the rural population and the contrast between urban and rural living, among other themes.
Pedro Ruiz develops his works through projects. He is an outstanding painter and sculptor and uses his academic foundations to develop artistic projects that are edgy and contemporary. It is this successful combination, that has placed him as one of Latin America’s rising stars. In recent years his project “Gold, A Spirit of Nature and Territory” has traveled to many countries stirring the public’s inner most feelings and impacting these countries’ artistic communities. Two beautiful coffee table books have been published covering the rich evolution of his career.
Short interview with the artist (in Spanish): https://youtu.be/OaNxc_0aG6M
Submitted by Beatriz Esguerra Art


