Paul Ramirez Jonas

Bio

Born in California and raised in Honduras, Paul Ramírez Jonas currently lives, works, and teaches in New York City. His work challenges the boundaries between artwork and spectator by asking participants to contribute something—such as a penny, wish, or key—in order to fully engage with the piece. His work ranges from large-scale public installation and monumental sculpture to intimate drawings, performances, and videos. “I like that idea that it takes two to make a piece of art successful—the person making the image and the person viewing it,” he says. “I’m really a believer in that. Art is that encounter between the thing that the artist made and the person taking in what the artist made. The meaning is made there. You need both parts of the equation.”