Carlos Ramirez

Carlos Ramirez was born in Cuba, but his family moved to the United States for political reasons when he was a child. His family’s story is like that of many immigrants, and he recalls those early days in New York:

“My parents came to this country with nothing but the clothes in their suitcases. They gave up a comfortable life that was deteriorating in hopes of a safe future. As an adult I can now admire their courage and determination. In their late thirties they landed in a country where they didn't speak the language, had no financial resources and a small child.”

Ramirez always drew and painted, but as the only child of an immigrant family, his parents were concerned that he have a structured profession rather than take a chance on a career as an artist. In college, he focused on drawing and drafting in the hopes of pursuing an architectural degree, but at the last minute, due to the prodding of his father, he applied to law school.

He received a full scholarship to the University of Miami Law School, where he excelled but soon realized his heart was not in it. In his last year, he left the program to follow a vision of putting a fashion collection together. “I applied all of my drawing, sketching, and design skills to this new endeavor,” he notes. At age 23, he established the label Liancarlo, and today he is a highly recognized designer in the fashion world. The label has dressed dozens of celebrities, and his work has been featured in countless fashion magazines.

Throughout the years of growing his business, he became a designer by day, painter by night, taking workshops with such greats as painter Wolf Kahn. He made time to pursue his painting with the same detailed study and commitment that he brought to building a business.

In 2014, he was accepted into the prestigious Master Artists Series workshops for abstract painters with nationally known teacher Steven Aimone at the Atlantic Center for the Arts in Florida. Over the years, his paintings have evolved from representational work to the large and ambitious abstract pieces he creates today.

Line, color, and shape are at the core of both his designs and paintings. They are not separate but have cohabited for many years, one being a natural outgrowth of the other. Ramirez continues to paint daily out of his studio in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Website: https://carlosramirezart.com