Photo by Malin Bengts
My work begins with a word.
In the Writing series, I write by hand — single words, short aphoristic texts — in pastel and colored pencil on handmade cotton rag paper. The texts are readable, direct, unfiltered. A word like STILL or ELSEWHERE carries its own weight; isolated on paper, it begins to argue with its surroundings. I'm interested in that friction — what a familiar word does when it has to stand alone.
The distinction between the two series is repetition, not length or subject. A word or phrase written once, and left legible, belongs to Writing. The same word or phrase, written again and again until it stops behaving like language, becomes Script.
Script starts with the same word, then repeats it — in pencil, crayon, marker, Neocolor, oil pastel — until it stops behaving like language. Say a word enough times and it comes apart: legibility gives way to rhythm, then to pressure, then to pure mark. What's left is the residue of a word said too many times to still mean anything.
Between the two series sits the same question: how little is needed for a mark to speak — and how much repetition it takes to empty one out.
I write by hand because handwriting cannot be impersonal. Every line is a decision I have to stand behind.
Bio
Johnny Ramstedt has exhibited internationally since 1999, including Volta Art Fair Basel and group exhibitions in Miami, New York, and London. His work is held in private and corporate collections in Finland and internationally.
For inquiries: jr@johnnyramstedt.com