For Liste Art Fair, Eli Ruhala presents a selection of works that trace the continuum between past, present, and future in their practice. Through painting, drawing, and an experimental approach to materiality, the presentation explores the body’s relationship to space—how it is remembered, constructed, and felt in real time.

Anchoring the booth is a large-scale painting, a fragment from a past installation. Extracted from its original context, the work functions as both a remnant and a self-contained composition, carrying the weight of its history while opening new possibilities for interpretation.

Eli Ruhala is an artist working at the intersection of blue-collar and artistic labor exploring it through a queer lens. In his practice, building materials are used as a vehicle for contemporary narratives. Fine art making processes such as modeling and glazing are in conversation with instinctual acts of labor tying back to the medium’s main applications. Eli Ruhala obtained his BFA in Painting from the Maryland Institute College of Art. Recent exhibitions of his work include the MFA Candidacy Exhibition, at Fort Worth Contemporary, Fort Worth, Texas (2024); Dallas Art Fair Volume 13 Bill Arning Exhibitions, Dallas, Texas (2023); Avowal, Browder Street, Dallas, Texas (2022); Ephemera(lity), Ro2 Art Gallery, Dallas, Texas (2021)