While my career is solidly based in User Experience Design and Digital Strategy, I have at points throughout my life worked as a Musician, Writer, DJ, Video/Sound/Mixed Media Artist, Photographer and Curator. Over the 15 years that I have been working in interactive technology, art and music I’ve found that the lines between the mediums I work in are increasingly blurring. The more digital these disciplines become, the means of production becomes less distinguishable. It’s this fact that has made it possible for me to extend my creative endeavors across disciples.
My involvement in music production and DJ Culture has been central part of my life since I was a teenager. Over the years I have produced music, hosted a radio show, written about music, played in bands and made more mixtapes than I can count. I started a record label/collective called Architects and Heroes as an outlet for my work and the work of others. While the output ebbs and flows, it continues to be a hub of creative sound and visual art.
Artist Statement
As a multimedia artist, I have taken the act of digital expression to it’s logical extreme. Having studied music, art, film/video production, creative writing and computer programming in college, I’ve always felt like I’ve had a kind of creative schizophrenia. I always had an interest in synthesizing all of my creative pursuits, in finding a way to express whatever I wanted to via multiple channels. With the advent of the internet, digital technology and the evolution of the tools that allow for more sophisticated processing, I’ve found a way to achieve that goal.
I am an alumni of the University of Oklahoma and Southern Methodist University and currently live in Los Angeles with my wife, my son Julian and the most amazing dog in the world, Astro.
Music I’ve made:
DJ Stephen R. @ Architects and Heroes
DJ Stephen R. on Myspace
The Summer of Flux
Stories I’ve written
San Francisco Raves in the 1990′s
SF Raves in 90’s – Part 1
SF Raves in 90’s – Part 2
SF Raves in 90’s – Part 3
SF Raves in 90’s – Part 4
SF Raves in 90’s – Part 5
Stephen Ruiz 