PDF, 5 MB - McKnight Foundation

Indeed, during her time in our community,
Ranee transported us from the comfortable
familiarity of Byron to the alluring sights,
sounds, smells, and tastes of southern India.
T T T
Recently, Ranee spent an entire day cleaning
and organizing her small home office. That
evening, in her living room, we laughed
together at an old, somewhat faded photograph
Ranee had discovered earlier in the day, that of
a young, blond-haired boy with a red sash tied
around his waist and a microphone in his raised
hand. The boy in the photograph was Colin,
my now-grown son. It was February 1997.
Colin, then a fourth-grader, was onstage at the
culminating performance of one of Ragamala’s
artist-residency programs. Two years later, my
daughter, Annaliese, was hoisted onto the stage
at another Ragamala performance, providing
her with one of her most vivid, joyful childhood
memories. How do we measure the importance
of such events in the lives of our children, in our
schools, in our communities?
Part of Ranee’s genius lies in her
ability to create powerful collaborations, as
was illustrated beautifully in Ragamala’s daring
work with artists such as I Dewa Putu Berata of
Bali and the Milwaukee-based Ko-Thi Dance
Company. Ranee’s collaborative brilliance
extends also to her work as a teacher. For
the past 20 years—with love and a ferocious
spirit—Ranee has worked tirelessly in residency
programs throughout Minnesota. Through her
passionate commitment to teaching as well as to
performance, Ranee Ramaswamy has
profoundly enriched our lives.
Catherine Egenberger teaches art at
Rochester Community and Technical
College in Rochester, Minnesota.
Ranee Ramaswamy 2011 mcknight distinguished artist 22