James Ruddle: Morocco Painting

I was born july 8 1981 in Hamilton Ontario Canada. I attended Westdale Secondary School and began painting in Oil at the age of 16. I was a graphic designer and scanner operator at SE Graphics from 1998-1999. I went to Mcmaster University where I began studying Multi media and Fine Arts. I dropped out of Multi media in 2nd year and Focused Full Time on the creation of art and organizing my artistic Philosophy. Graham Todd and Allan Flint were major influences in the direction my life and art took. I am currently practicing arT and Teaching in the Greater Toronto Area. Artist Statement The juxtaposition of natural and industrial landscapes is a large theme throughout my work. While industrial landscapes, and in particular factory work sites, are often regarded in a negative way as unsightly and dirty locales, there is a beauty behind the grimy and sooty facades. In this series I was heavily influenced by my roots in Hamilton, Ontario, as I monumentalize such landscapes by recreating them with elements of fire, water and pigment. The rawness and hardness of the steel and concrete is somehow balanced well by the shores of Lake Ontario, the Hamilton escarpment and sky. These paintings are also interpretations of the dilemma of today's reality. Our society needs factories, such as steel mills and oil refineries to properly function, but they are a great source of contamination to our environment. This series is particularly relevant in today's political climate, with the increased focus on global warming and the need to implement new plans for a healthier planet.