Ray Powers considers himself a “techo-pagan”. The love for nature and technology has been inspiring his creative output since childhood. Whether it be in the visual or musical arts many of his musings of “what could be” have come to fruition. He is an early adopter of the advancements in computer and digital tools. As they have grown, he has grown in the ability to express what he sees and hears within himself.
“The earth has been my greatest teacher. Observing the cycles, seasons and symbiosis of all manner of life, both large and infinitesimal, has inspired and informed my art and music composition.”
In 1971, Ray went on a field trip to a landfill in Los Angeles. Soon after he helped start the environmental club at his school. It was in this same year he was taught to meditate during summer camp. Nature and natural cycles, stillness and the insights that come from it are the sources he draws upon.
With this early influence his skills and commitment to community and the environment have continued. In recent years, he has been the art director for public murals, premiered Valley of the Moon an orchestral symphonic work, served on the Ojai City Planning Commission, as vice president of the Ojai Valley Green Coalition and is currently the global liaison for Ojai International City of Peace.
“Technology has played a part as a collaborator to bring forward the visions I have with the chosen mediums I use. Beginning in the early 1980’s with cutting edge electronic music software to present day where artificial intelligence helps me define, create and realize what I see and want to convey. As a composer, I write notes, symbols, on a page and musicians read and interpret what I have written. I am the director and the instigator. As a visual artist, a different type of collaboration has emerged. One where man and machine are crafting the narrative and outcome together Human emotion and technical prowess merge into powerful statements of our human condition, challenges and dream worlds.”
