Sugar:: Rontherin Ratliff

??Fats Domino, the name bring to mind the saturated fats in Cookies and other grain-based desserts and the yellow, white and blue bags of sugar on the shelves of many baking aisles in groceries stores here in southern Louisiana. It’s not his name but the role he played in the music world that was profound. Similar to that of the body’s blood sugar, he was the source of inspirational energy for many musicians that are listed amongst the greats. The significance of Fats Domino work was outstanding. He was considered one of the architects of Rock n’ Roll. Fats performed worldwide, yet the concept for this piece grew out of thinking about where Fats loved to be, which were in New Orleans, at home and on his black baby grand piano. The goal of this piece is to continue to celibate an artist of color who allowed his talent to pave the way to his life’s dreams.

Rontherin Ratliff, who’s a self-taught artist exploring the relationship between aspects of architecture as analogous to the characteristics of the human conditions was born in New Orleans where he currently lives and works. He is a member of Antenna and LEVEL Artist Collective in New Orleans. Recent exhibition venues include the Elsewhere Museum (Greensboro, NC), Art Route 2017 (Groningen, NL), Xavier University Gallery (New Orleans, LA), Newcomb Art Museum (New Orleans, LA), Deering Estate (Miami, FL), Governor’s Island (New York,NY), 516 ARTS (Albuquerque, NM), Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Art Gallery (Worcester, MA), University Galleries FAU (Boca Raton, FL), Ogden Museum of Southern Art (New Orleans, LA) and Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum (East Lansing, MI). Learn more at www.rontherin.com.