Natalie Ramus Interview

We caught up with Natalie Ramus BA (Hons) Fine Art graduate, at the prestigious New Art West Midlands Exhibition to find out what she’s been up to, and more…

What have you been up to since graduating?

After finishing my Fine Art degree at Hereford College of Art I was selected to exhibit my degree show work at the Bargehouse, London as part of FloatArt. I was then awarded a scholarship to study Master of Fine Art which I completed in September 2016 to the level of distinction. During 2016 I developed the performative aspect of my practice, and performed at Tempting Failure CIC, London, Emergency, Manchester and Modern Panic VII, London.

What does being part of the New Art West Midlands exhibition mean to you & why?

It is an opportunity for me to engage with a new audience and creative network in a city that I have not experienced in my art career to date. I hope to make contact with other artists involved with New Art West Midlands allowing me to widen my network and engage / develop further dialogue and opportunities.

What art do you most identify with?

My practice is very much inter-disciplinary. It has become increasingly action based, but I feel that I cannot separate visual art and performance. For me these fields are very much intertwined. I am particularly interested in exploring install-action through durational performance. I believe art is a means of research- a way to better understand myself and the world I live in; asking questions but never finding answers!

What advice would you give to current and future creative students when applying for exhibitions?

I would advise creative students to see the application process as an opportunity to clarify and refine your thinking within your practice. Having to communicate your ideas in a clear and succinct way to a stranger is useful when you are trying to position yourself within the art world. I would also say that the more you apply for the better you will get at applying- like most things, you get better with practice. With regards to rejection my tutor, Mark Gubb at Cardiff School of Art and Design gave me some fantastic advice; he said, “If you don’t get selected don’t see it as you being at fault, when you go to a cake shop you don’t reject all the cakes you don’t buy- they just weren’t the right cakes for you at that time. This is the same with opportunities- the selector may have loved your work but it just wasn’t right for this opportunity. But, through the process of applying they have now seen your work and it will hopefully remain in their mind when the right opportunity comes up.”

What advice would you give to creative students currently studying?

My advice would be to really allow yourself to make mistakes and take risks. That uneasy feeling you get when you are taking risks can be scary, but it is often then that you make the biggest most exciting discoveries. The most exciting moments in my art career to date have come after everything has gone wrong!

How has Hereford College of Arts help shape your art style?

What HCA gave me was a period of time where I was given the attention and support from my incredible tutors which allowed me to develop my confidence to be able to be brave in my art practice. My motto is to always try to be as brave as the artists I admire, and without support, this would not have been possible.

What exciting things do you have coming up?

I will be performing my longest durational performance to date at Buzzcut, Glasgow (5th-9th April 2017) It will be a 9 hour performance called Mather’s Pride.
I am also exhibiting a selection of works at an exhibition, The Female Gaze: An Introspection at The Depot Gallery, Clapton, London at the end of February. I will also be performing at the same gallery the end of April.

This is alongside working as project assistant at The Sidney Nolan Trust, and also contributing to their current residency project as an artist.
Busy times ahead!

Dont forget to visit Natalie’s pieces at New Art West Midlands Exhibition at mac Gallery Birmingham.