ABOUT THE WORK

Ronald Ventura’s renditions of the nude portray the human body as void of any standards influenced by the capitalist concept of beauty. His artistic virtuosity is manifested through his nude pieces and depictions of the human figure that he renders in quick succession. Beyond this, Ventura’s stylized aesthetic of the nude demolishes the rigidness of the traditional male-female binary. Art critic Alice Guillermo elucidated this further: “It follows from this that a number of his figures take on an androgynous cast as they foreground gender symmetry. Such is the ideal condition that he [Ventura] aspires for in art, for reality only too sharply underscores the power relations in gender relationships which are replicated in the larger political arena.” In these two nude pieces by Ventura, the gestures of the two individuals are allusions to allegorical nuances of self-consciousness and insecurity as shown in the seemingly reticent bodily expressions of the two figures. It can also be deduced from these works that his human figures are often imbued in pain, veering away from traditional representations and exuding a dark expressionist style. As showcased in these creations, Ventura proves himself as a savant of the human figure.