We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Helene Ruiz. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Helene below.

Helene, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

I try to propose multi media art events ( to include poetry, music, visual art, performance art, etc) whenever it is possible. I feel that the layers of message and variety of ways to speak through art make for a more interesting and thought provoking event. A lot of my projects ( proposals ) are to be a voice on a topic that tends to be swept under the rug so to speak. I have always felt it important to advocate for human rights, justice, world peace, animal rights and so much more. Even if some of the visitors do not agree with everything we have to say, it certainly leaves them lots of room for thought. This is where I feel fulfilled. If I can produce something that leaves another to think, I have served to purpose of creating some sort of awareness. That in turn, means that perhaps something someone never before considered before an opinion…may now think about.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am an artist and I was born that way. I was blessed with a creative father who encouraged creativity always and I felt comfort in creative projects. I always felt a little out of place and awkward growing up. I tried to fit in, but it was like I was a piece of a puzzle that just could not fit in with the other pieces, so there was no where to feel I could fit into comfortably enough to be part of. I never saw things in the same way as the others that were around me. They saw a tree, I saw faces and heard music and sounds from the patterns in the tree. They saw clouds, I heard the stories they told and saw the pictures in them. I worked hard from 14 years old. I was a young single mom by the age of 18 and worked as a medical coder and biller for the most part of my working years in addition to waitressing as I had kids to support and bills to pay.. They were my priority always. Then after being struck by some unexpected and unforeseen challenges back in 2001/ 2002, I felt a bit hopeless and scared so I turned to my love of “creating” for comfort and realized how healing it was and how I could escape pain and depression when I painted, drew wrote, etc. . . It understood me and I understood it. It fit. It fit me well. It gave me peace, It gave me a sense of purpose that I had not realized the importance of before, maybe even a sense of purpose I didn’t pay attention to because of so many other obligations and societal expectations. In 2008 I decided to use it as a force and healer to include other creatives I met over the years. It too, gave them that sense of purpose and we could relate. That is when I formed The Urban Individualists Artists Collective, a multi media arts collective. I included some people who were willing to ship works from their states or even other countries that I had met over art websites I had joined. I created friendships with many people from other countries and other states and cities as we would excitedly encourage and appreciate each others works on the site. The locals and I would meet in my Bronx NY apartment several weekends a month and discuss creative ways to be a voice on issues in a way to attract the audience and relay a thought provoking message with art, in a variety of forms. Art that would leave people thinking. I wanted to allow the other creatives to have the freedom to feel free to create without restrictions. We would pick themes, write proposals and I would search out venues to accept our proposals. I would send the minutes from our meeting in group emails to include those unable to attend to keep them informed of our meet ups and allow them to respond with their ideas. ( no zoom then and I was not computer saavy by any means lol) Mr Gerry Eastman, founder and owner of The Williamsburg Music Center (WMC) in Brooklyn NY was the first person to welcome us and our creative endeavors. We opened there in 2009 with our first introduction show with an eclectic variety of works and themes in order to introduce each of us, our styles, our genres, etc. The event included live poetry, visual art and of course the wonderful live jazz in WMC. Mr Eastman will always be appreciated and respected and I will never forget him for opening the door to a world I wish I had allowed myself to know before. We since have done several events with him with the last back in 2014 where shortly after I had another unexpected life threatening encounter. I again, will be doing a pop up show with Gerry at WMC on August 29th 2025 (wmcjazz.com). This event will include the works of Naomi Cordova ( she has been there to assist me and work with me on projects for 2 years now) some of my own artwork to include a few new collage pieces,Photography by my son in law Gilbert Laforestrie, Art by Risegun Olomidun ( a multi talented visual artist and percussionist) Poetry will be led by Mr William Wa Wa Washington, my niece Monica Hill, Poets include William, Monica, myself, Naomi, my daughter Ginger Laforestrie, and guest poets. I invite musicians to improv along with the rhythms of the poetry if they like to give movement and add more dimension, The show is titled Voices United and will include topics of urban life, music, and the political issues of today.
My works are usually a bit abstract or surreal in the eyes of others, but it is my reality. If any artist makes a sale, I make sure they know to donate to the venue for the opportunity as a platform. The pay? LOL….well… unless there is a sale, there is no pay..other than the gratification of uniting people and being a voice for others. There are no words to explain the concept, but we all need to know, everything gratifying is not only monetary but also spiritually rewarding.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding part of being an artist is seeing the diversity of people that attend, become engaged in conversations otherwise may have not occurred and creating an awareness and better understanding of topics that may have been overlooked with a variety of mediums to keep it pleasing and interesting. Bringing people together and seeing them engaged and interested to know more by inviting them to interact with the artists with questions or conversations allowing a new way to view things.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

My goal is to keep the arts alive. My collective is a diverse combination of visual and performing
artists. As the brainchild behind this multicultural, multi-media and international network, I have and still do work hard to unite a mixture of people and their diverse artistic talents into a cohesive unit. I firmly believe in
the power of collective expression, using our distinct styles to make an impactful statement.
I have curated and organized countless multimedia exhibits, also providing emerging artists with a platform to showcase their work, build their artistic resumes, and gain recognition. Many of us as artists are denied access to venues or we are charged outrageous fees. I look to find some more unconventional spaces which adds yet another layer to the diversity of the audience. I also try to include an interactive element during the reception inviting the audience to an opportunity to also be a part of the event.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.artmajeur.com/artgirl
• Other: I don’t do social media, I do welcome emails, and I do use the website : artmajeur.com/artgirl

Image Credits

Helene Ruiz