Miljohn Ruperto

Miljohn Ruperto (born 1971, Philippines) is a Los Angeles-based visual artist.^[1][2]

Education

Ruperto received a Bachelor of Arts degree from University of California, Berkeley, and a Master of Fine Arts degree from Yale University.^[1]

Work

Ruperto's work has been described as "speculat[ing] on the nature of assumed facts and construction of truth,"^[3] and utilizing "an intriguing play between an apparent sense of control, or purpose, and the actual lack of it."^[4] His work "challenges fixed conceptions of truth and history, and instead speaks of an indeterminacy and subjectivity of experience that renders truth and fiction near indistinguishable."^[5]

In 2012, the Whitney Biennial featured Ruperto's "Voynich Botanical Studies."^[2] The work, a series of photographs of imaginary plants based on illustrations from the Voynich Manuscript, is an ongoing collaboration with Danish artist Ulrik Heltoft. Ruperto and Heltoft "created [the images] with 3-D modeling software that blends found images and textures into uncanny amalgamations... strikingly mysterious plant forms that appear to levitate against their deep black backgrounds."^[6]

In 2017, Ruperto's solo show at REDCAT Gallery, Los Angeles, featured his installation "Geomancies," which included a film, photographs, video works, and a performance piece.^[7] The installation wove together elements taken from science, mythology, American history, literature, and horror film.^[8] In 2019, "Geomancies" was included in the 2019 Singapore Bienniale.^[9][10]

Ruperto's artwork was also part of the 2018 Industrial Art Bienniale in Labin, Croatia,^[11] and the 2021 Jakarta Bienniale.^[12]

Collections

Ruperto's work is part of the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art,^[13] the Whitney Museum of American Art,^[14] the Hammer Museum,^[15] the Walker Art Museum,^[16] and the Cantor Arts Center,^[17] among others.