About Ralph Pugay 

Drawing inspiration from historical events, popular culture, and observations of everyday life, Ralph Pugay captures the curious and absurd facets of life through his brightly colored and playfully composed paintings. Informed by his background as a Filipino-American queer artist,  his painted tableaus often depict archetypal characters caught in evocative moments, set within jarring, alien realities. Pugay pushes the boundaries of nonlinear visual storytelling to engage viewers in reflecting on urgent questions about belonging, identity, and morality, all conveyed with a distinctive blend of clarity and humor.

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Ralph Pugay (b. 1983 in Cavite, Philippines; lives and works in Portland, OR) holds a BA and MFA in Contemporary Art Practice from Portland State University, Portland, OR. Pugay has been in residence at the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, Madison, ME; the Rauschenberg Foundation, Captiva Island, FL; the Joan Mitchell Center, New Orleans, LA; Crow's Shadow Golden Spot Residency Program, Pendleton, OR, and Creative Exchange Lab, Portland Institute for Contemporary Art, Portland, OR. Awards include a Ford Family Foundation Rauschenberg Fellowship, the 2015 Betty Bowen Award from the Seattle Art Museum, an Oregon Arts Commission Fellowship, and a Joan Mitchell Foundation Painters and Sculptors Award.