All In The Family: Mariano, Yasmin, and Haraya Ching

Mariano and Haraya Ching, "Jelly Ace Series 5" and "Jelly Ace Series 6", pyrograph and acrylic on wood

Just call it family bonding, Ching-style.  To most parents, especially those with busy careers and young children, spending time with their families means doing things together, mostly on weekends:  eating out, catching a movie, indulging in sports, visiting grandparents.  To artists Yasmin Sison and Mariano Ching,  it is inevitable that in addition to these, art plays a large part in their interaction with their five-year-old son, Haraya. They have  both just come off from doing work for shows out of Manila (Yasmin’s solo, Spaces In Between, was at Artesan in Singapore in June, while Nano participates in Japan’s Aichi Triennale this month). In this exhibit, Games For Growing, at Blanc Peninsula,  they come together as a couple and as a family, showing individual and collaborative work borne out of their role as parents to a precocious child.  To quote from Yasmin’s exhibit statement,”…the exhibition

Yasmin Sison and Mariano Ching, "Defying Gravity", 48x36 per panel, acrylic, enamel, and oil on canvas

though is mostly about play or at least trying to capture the essence of it in our work, the spontaneity and fun that comes so easily in the works of our child and which for us is an elusive thing that we try to capture.”

Haraya, "Dummies Series", iron bar, acrylic, wood

Both Nano and Yasmin looked back to their own experiences and interests as children to put together their work for this show.  This accounts for the lively innocence  that pervades throughout the exhibit, a feel underscored all the more by the display of works by Haraya himself.  His sketches of heroes have been magnified and transformed into steel sculpture that stand about three feet tall, and have been painted bright, primary colors.  Nano and Yasmin have also used his drawings of masks to create wall-bound sculpture in wood,  with Nano tracing out Haraya’s lines with a pyrography pen, then using acrylic for color.  Yasmin mounted 20 framed collages, a series she calls Gepetto’s Workshop, where she used images cut out from books of Disney’s Pinocchio.  Nano had one steel piece finished with automotive paint.  It is made up of four letters

Detail, "Defying Gravity"

that spell “apes”, reflecting a childhood affinity for science fiction (I’m guessing Planet Of The Apes) that still comes across his works today.

Yasmin Sison, "Gepetto's Workshop Series", 12"x21", collage

An interesting exercise undertaken by husband and wife are their attempts at doing collaborative paintings.  Yasmin admitted that this posed a challenge as they work with different styles.  They had three triptychs of varied sizes (the smallest at 16″x16″ per panel, the largest at 48″x36″ per panel).  I thought they carried this off pretty well; the pieces did not end up looking like they tried too hard to put it together.

Overall, while I don’t think the show brings out significant pieces to add to their body of work, Yasmin and Nano’s celebration and

Detail of one of Yasmin Sison's "Gepetto's Workshop" collages

pride in their role as parents permeate so palpably.  We see another dimension to them as artists.  As Yasmin puts it: “This exhibition looks back at our childhood, but also moves [us] forward,  as we try new things and get out of our comfort zone. In this way not only our son, but we as well,  are included in the game of growing.”

Another detail from a Gepetto's Workshop collage

Games For Growing runs from 4 to 25 September 2010 at Blanc Peninsula,  Peninsula Manila Hotel arcade (facing Makati Avenue), Makati City.  Phone (63920) 927-6436 or visit http://www.blanc.ph

Yasmin Sison and Mariano Ching, "Diving Sphere", acrylic, enamel, and oil on canvas, 56"x 16"

Haraya, "Dummies Series", iron bar, acrylic, and wood

Mariano and Haraya Ching, "Jelly Ace 1", "Jelly Ace 2", "Jelly Ace 3", pyrograph and acrylic on wood

Mariano Ching, "Apes", acrylic and automotive paint on steel

Detail, "Apes"

Yasmin Sison and Mariano Ching, "Wishful Thinking", 16"x16" per panel, acrylic, collage, enamel, and oil on canvas

Installation of Gepetto's Workshop series of collages

Dina Gadia Grabs You

As I walked around Blanc’s original space to view Dina Gadia’s current solo exhibit, I remembered a cramped hole in the wall

Dina Gadia with "Action 2"

that I chanced upon two years ago in Hong Kong.  Squeezed in between antique stores and art galleries in Hollywood Road, the tiny space sold vintage Chinese cinema banners and bundles of ancestor portraits. Dina’s current crop of paintings would have fit right in.

Jay Pacena, Allan Balisi, and Dina with "Walk"

How Does That Grab You Darling takes off from Dina’s fascination with B-movie posters from the 1930s to the 1970s.  She uses bright, even acidic, shades that give off a retro vibe.  Her compositions, usually of various images and texts juxtaposed as if pasted atop each other in layers, look more like collages than painted images.  Her background in advertising and graphic design comes out very strongly.  As do her Pop Art influences.

Dina Gadia, "Foul Horror"

You hear a bit of a buzz about Dina Gadia from art collectors these days.  This show certainly provides sustenance to her fans.

How Does That Grab You Darling runs from 16 April to 8 May 2010 at Blanc Art Space, 2E Crown Tower, 170 HV Dela Costa St., Salcedo Village, Makati City.  Phone(632)752-0032 or visit http://www.blanc.ph

Mixed media piece by Dina Gadia

Dina Gadia, "Dynamite 2"

By Dina Gadia

Janet Balbarona Is Peachy Keen

Janet Balbarona, "Ricochet 2"

To spark the inspiration that took the Man of La Mancha on his impossible quest, Manuel de Cervantes reportedly wrote while sitting immersed up to his knees in pails of freezing water. He believed that the cold stimulated his literary juices.  Artist Janet Balbarona can definitely relate to such unorthodox creativity boosters.  She herself has not been averse to donning a ball gown or two while completing her paintings.  To prepare for her second solo exhibit, she has taken up residence at the artist’s studio of Blanc Compound in Mandaluyong. Two suitcases crammed with outfits and accessories, plus a horde of shoes, fill her bedroom.

Janet Balbarona, "Dear"

“Kailangan ma- feed ko ang fashion fix when I paint,” the 27-year-old Janet reveals, laughing. Tonight she wears a bright orange, a-line tube, her black bra straps exposed on otherwise bare shoulders, neon yellow sneakers on her feet. A patch of scalp lies visible beneath the close shave of her asymmetric haircut.  “I love Vivienne Westwood and anything from the eighties,” she shares.  But she goes by what feels right as she works.  “Sometimes as I paint a particular detail, feel ko dapat naka red ako. So, palit ako in the middle of painting that object.  Sometimes, magkaiba pa ang shoes ko!” Unsurprisingly, Janet’s pieces resemble collages put together like a designer’s look book of clothing illustrations.   As the daughter of tailors, fashion figures largely in her compositions.

An onlooker for "Staring Finger Print" and "The Second Round"

Detail, "The Second Round"

“My pieces look like pages of a scrapbook, parang unfinished, ungrounded, raw.  I put in what seem to be random elements, pero may meaning lahat yon.” Beneath the insouciance, the brilliant hues, and the trendy vibe, lie deeply personal stories.  In this exhibit, Peeling Peaches For The Sharpest Tongue, she fills her canvases with various depictions of herself, each one a narrative of her life in Beijing.  She includes mementos gathered as she partied and painted her way around the Chinese capital.

Janet Balbarona, "Online Candy"

Janet moved to China in 2008, four years after graduating with a Fine Arts degree from Far Eastern University, and a year after a stint in Perth doing commissioned portraits for an aboriginal rights group.  In Beijing, she gravitated around the club scene, hanging out with DJs and young fashion designers. Inevitably, Janet hooked up with some artists and started working on her art.  The galleries in the 798 arts district, although interested in her portfolio, felt that the market would not take her seriously until she had a few one-man exhibits in her resume. Early in 2009, she headed home to make her Manila debut.  Her pieces have since found their way into the collections of the local art cognoscenti.

Janet Balbarona, "Sweet Thoughtfulness"

In this current body of work, Janet weaves images of peaches into all her paintings.   She throws them in, innocuous and hardly apparent, amidst her self-portraits. The peaches and peach blossoms serve as ornaments, the same way they adorn classical Chinese paintings.  You can tell which of her works relive good memories.  For these, Janet renders her peaches plump, pink, juicy.  Otherwise, she depicts them rotten and decayed, decomposing amidst scavenging rats.

Janet’s pieces possess the frankness of Janet herself. She goes through unexpected lengths to portray the truth.  Before she could bring herself to get started on this show, even as her canvases had already been stretched and primed, and her frocks lay waiting to be slipped on, she found herself flying to Hong Kong. She spent a week seeking closure to an incident that she wanted to include in this exhibit.  Her paintings deliver sincerity in a stylish package.

Janet

If each painting recounts an episode, then this entire show can be viewed as a full account of Janet Balbarona’s eventful year.  Through her pieces, we find ourselves vicariously reliving the life of a hip, peripatetic romantic.   Manuel de Cervantes may actually have a word for her:  quixotic.

Peeling Peaches For The Sharpest Tongue runs from 22 February to  12 March 2010 at Blanc Makati, 2E Crown Tower, 107 Dela Costa St., Salcedo Village, Makati.  Phone (632)752-0032 or visit http://www.blanc.ph

Janet Balbarona, "Staring Finger Print"

This post is a slightly edited version of my article for Rogue Magazine Feb 2010 issue.  See http://www.rogue.ph

Andy Barrioquinto Turns Japanese

"Realms Of The Senses" and Andy Barrioquinto

I had always been drawn to Andres Barrioquinto’s faces, especially the monochromatic ones of recent history, rendered almost flat, in tones of blue.  They exhibit horrified expressions, quite compelling, as they stare out from empty sockets. He’d paint them alongside cubist patterns, remnants of an earlier series that had

"Realms Of The Senses", detail

become his signature. This past year, though, Andy’s paintings took on a different style.  To be honest, I did not really enjoy the purely photorealstic direction his narratives had shifted to.  They felt a little too familiar.  We’ve seen them before from others.

Andres Barrioquinto, "Eden"

In this show, The Gods of Small Things, Andy experiments yet again.  I think he’s produced his best work yet.  He turns to Japanese paper prints, silk screened or stenciled Chiyogami and Katazome-shi. He takes patterns based on traditional kimono designs, their bright colors and images from nature,  and applies them in

Andres Barrioquinto, "False Face"

detailed layers onto stylized portraits.  Cranes, chrysanthemums, leaves, and swirls intermingle with unsmiling faces.  His subjects look out—vacuous, sombre, forbidding—beneath ornamentation rendered repeatedly, akin to tattoos, over their visages. If his faces drew me in before, now they positively transfix.  He combines the photorealistic with the graphic, decorative elements

Andres Barrioquinto, "Forbidden"

that evoke placidity and balance fuse with the strong and disturbing.  What potential for an interesting series!

By Andres Barrioquinto, "Mirror of Deceit" and "Dust In The Eye"

For the show’s catalogue, Andy had good friend, writer Dave Lock (the subject for Realms of the Senses), compose short verses for each of the pieces on view.

Andres Barrioquinto, "The Maker"

The 34-year-old Andy has exhibited in more than 20 shows.  He’s had his ups and downs as a painter too.  He tells me that without consciously being aware of it, he’s recently found his stride.  He mustered the discipline to paint everyday, keeping to a working schedule that pushes him to create as he paints.  He’s discovered a love for his craft that’s made him meticulous, almost obsessive even, with all the aspects of his work, from the condition of his canvases to the final finishing touches on his pieces.  He doesn’t discriminate, both small or large-scale paintings receive the same dedication and attention to detail.  It certainly shows.

Andres Barrioquinto, "Twilight Madman"

View of exhibit installation

The Gods of Small Things runs from 17 October to 7 November 2009 at Blanc Compound, 359 Shaw Blvd, Mandaluyong.  Phone (632)752-0032 or visit http://www.blanc.ph or visit  htttp://www.barrioquinto.multiply.com

Something Different Part II: Art Sanchez at Blanc Makati

Detail of Art Sanchez, "Saturation Point"

Art Sanchez, "Between Raindrops and Sunshine 6"

Art Sanchez works with collages on mirrors.  I first saw his work a few weeks ago when some friends and I set out on a sojourn to Quezon City to check out the art scene away from our comfort zone of Makati.  We all agreed he seemed an artist to keep an eye out for.  For his first solo show, he brings us even more interesting collages.  For two of them, his larger pieces, he combines the mirrors with oil paintings on canvas.  He starts by scratching out the paint behind mirrors and seals his cut outs with lacquer or paint.  As you can see from the photos, they come out kinda cool!

Art Sanchez, "Saturation Point"

Art Sanchez, "Afterthoughts...thoughts after"

Afterthoughts by Art Sanchez runs from 6 July at Blanc Art Space, 2E Crown Tower, 107 HV Dela Costa St., Salcedo Village, Makati.  Ph (632)752-0032 or visit

Art Sanchez, "Test Subjects"

http://www.blanc.ph

Detail , "Test Subjects"

Art Sanchez exhibit installation, at center is "Floating Moodswing"

April Roundup: Rodel Tapaya, Ling Quisumbing, Lea Lim, Surrounded By Water; May Beginnings: Elmer Borlongan at Sitio Remedios

Rodel Tapaya, "The Aswang Turns Into a Cat"

I arrived from an almost month-long furlough with my husband and kids in busy, bustling, frenetic, and always exciting New York City. I loved rediscovering favorite masterpieces in the great museums and stumbling onto new ones at the contemporary art spaces that dot the city’s art haunts: Chelsea’s Gallery District, the New Museum at Nolita, Soho. But nothing beats plunging headlong into the art scene that never sleeps—that of our very own!

With Melbourne-based curator, Jeff Khan, here for a residency grant with Art Cabinet Philippines, I took advantage of the long May day weekend, and caught up with shows running on their last few days. Aaah— it’s good to be home! Welcome back to me!

DIORAMA BY RODEL TAPAYA

I have always been an unabashed Rodel Tapaya Garcia fan. I discovered his art the first time we organized Art In The Park for the Museum Foundation of the Philippines. Since that sunny June day in 2006, both that annual art event and that small painted face on burlap that I brought home have become very dear to me.

Rodel Tapaya, Cafre of Balayan detail, tin casement

In this show, Rodel continues with his exploration of art beyond paintings. He revisits the diorama, a device that has fascinated him since he started working as a full-time artist. Here, he uses it as a means to narrate the long-forgotten Philippine folk tales that provide substance to his work.

Rodel Tapaya, "Pedro and the Snake"

Rodel Tapaya, Cafre of Balayan, interior diorama detail

In the tradition of an altarpiece, he houses each diorama in tin sheets hammered and decorated like the urnas we find in old Filipino homes. Inside, found objects and sculpted wooden figures depict scenes from the old stories. The beauty of the pieces, though, lie in his artisanship, his embellishment of each casing, painting them with figures and forms that continue the myths told within.

Rumor has it that the Singapore Art Museum appropriated four of the pieces for their collection. True or not, that only proves what I’ve always loved about Rodel: he grounds his work on very Pinoy facets, yet they do not feel at all parochial, appealing to both his loyal, local fans and to art collectors beyond our shores.

Rodel Tapaya, Pedro and the Snake, outside detail

Diorama Rodel Tapaya is on view from 25 April to 16 May 2009 at The Drawing Room, Metrostar Bldg., 1007 Metropolitan Ave, Makati. Ph(632)897-7877 or visit www.drawingroomgallery.com

PENCIL WORKS BY CHRISTINA QUISUMBING

Christina Quisumbing, "Honeycomb"

Ling Quisumbing has resettled in Manila after almost a decade working in art-related projects in New York. In September last year, she exhibited an assemblage of found objects, Madre, at the Cultural Center of the Philippines, which took inspiration from the process of renovating her grandmother’s old house into a home for herself. Even then I thought that piece fantastic, and, intrigued, wanted to know more about the artist who put it together. What a wonderful surprise to stumble into her current show at the second floor gallery of Manila Contemporary!

Christina Quisumbing, "Nipple"

The concept of using various pencils as her medium began, like Madre, with the construction of her home. Piqued by the forms and textures of used pencils discarded by the carpenters who labored at the site, she played around with the idea of using these pencils to create art. Accumulating enough pencils proved to be a story in itslelf. To put together Roll Call, for instance, Ling struck a bargain with the principal of Tomas Morato Elementary School: she would replace a new pencil for every used pencil given to her.

Christina Quisumbing, Roll Call, detail

Hence, the thin tower of used pencils, many of them labelled with the names of the students who they belonged to.

Christina Quisumbing, "Querida" and "Heart"

One year and 40,000 pencils later, she brings us interesting sculptural pieces, testaments to her skill and imagination.

Ling is off soon for a two-month residency at Tembi Contemporary in Yogyakarta.

Pencil Works by Christina Quisumbing is part of the group show Parameters+Play+Repetition=Patterns until 10 May 2009 at Manila Contemporary inside Whitespace, 2314 Chino Roces Ave, Makati City. Ph (632) 844-7328 or visit www.manilacontemporary.com

Christina Quisumbing, "Drawing Table"

Christina Quisumbing, pencil on paper works

GIRL BY LEA LIM

When you speak to Lea Lim, you realize how much of herself she puts into her work.  All her seven pieces speak to us of her dreams and longings, her aspirations and reminiscences of things past, her aspirations for the future.

Lea Lim, "Girl"

In the exhibit’s title piece, the quadriptych Girl, she sees herself as holding her life options in hand. The contents of the jar may vary, but all represent different facets of her

Lea Lim, "Pinning Purpose"

person. In Pinning Purpose, she sees herself as a little girl lost in the woods, so many pathways to take, so many choices out there. She continues to ponder these questions in Little Red Riding and Hold.

Lea Lim, "Hold"

Girl by Lea Lim is on view until 16 May at Alliance Total Gallery, Alliance Francaise de Manille, 209 Nicanor Garcia St., Bel Air 2, Makati City. Ph (632)895-7441 or visit www.alliance.ph and www.artcabinetphilippines.com

IN THE OCEAN WITHOUT A BOAT OR A PADDLE, SURROUNDED BY WATER

I must be the only one in Manila who hasn’t seen this exhibit, and I’m glad I caught it. The story of this group of artists parallels the vicissitudes of recent Philippine contemporary art history . How difficult to believe that less than a decade ago, they struggled for opportunities to show in commercial galleries who scoffed at their art. Today, the exhibit list reads like a who’s who in every collector’s wish list. How inspiring is that?

Jonathan Ching, "Pilgrims"

Lyra Garcellano, "Ruptured" and "Broken"

Mariano Ching, "Up The Hill"

I thought that the Ching brothers have come to their own with their works for this show. I loved Mariano Ching’s wall bound sculpture from GI sheets and Jonathan Ching’s origami blackbirds backlit by neon lights.

Geraldine Javier, "Jumping At The Shadows"

What next for the SBW guys? How exciting to see!

The show features works by artists Argie Bandoy, Jonathan Ching, Mariano Ching, Yasmin Sison Ching, Louie Cordero, Christina Dy, Geraldine Javier, Lyra Garcellano, Eduardo Enriquez, Mike Munoz,Frederick Sausa, Keiye Miranda Tuazon, Wire Tuazon, Alvin Villaruel, Ferdz Valencia. Show runs until 14 May 2009 at Blanc Compound, 359 Shaw Blvd. interior, Mandaluyong City. Ph (632)752-0032 or visit www.blanc.ph

Louie Cordero, "Dumbskull"

ELMER BORLONGAN AT SITIO REMEDIOS

A few, a lucky few, received the privilege of a weekend by the beach at Dr. Joven Cuanang’s Ilocos Norte paradise, Sitio Remedios. For this weekend only, reservations came with more than the promise of bagnet and longganisa by the shores of the South China Sea. Elmer Borlongan’s one man show opened, and fifteen of the chosen had their pick of his pieces on exhibit.

Isn’t it about time that Emong, one of the nicest, nicest artists around, allows us mere mortals the chance to see more of his work, before they get snapped up by the hundreds in his waiting list? A curated exhibition at a beautiful space (SM Art Center? Blanc Compound?) in the near future would be great! Hear hear!

For more information on Elmer Borlongan’s show, visit www.sitioremedios.com or contact Boston Gallery at (632)722-9205

Zen At Shaw

By the gallery entrance

It’s a Sunday afternoon,  lazy and peaceful after a hectic Saturday night on the town with old friends visiting from London. The sun shines brightly, but the breeze gives the day a slight chill, a reminder that the year has just begun, the heat of summer still a few months away.  A great afternoon to try and catch the much-talked about Lao show at Blanc Compound in Mandaluyong.

Substance by Lao Lianben

The show opened exactly a week ago.  In a way I was glad we missed opening night.  Viewing the show today allows us to revel in the gallery’s quiet. Lao Lianben has said before that his art is about silence.  As we contemplate his monochromatic hues and marvel at the textures of his surfaces, we appreciate the serenity of his work.  Calm

Levitation by Lao Lianben

 washes over us.  When we emerge from the hush onto busy Shaw Boulevard, we feel recharged, ready to face the hectic week ahead.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Elements by Lao Lianben

Substance Lao Lianben can be viewed from 18 January to 5 Febuary

Head and Zen by Lao Lianben

at Blanc Compound, 359 Shaw Blvd, Mandaluyong City,  Phone (632) 750-0032 or www.blanc.ph

Budhist Television by Lao Lianben

Peering Into Lynyrd’s Blackhearted Soul

Lynyrd...

Lynyrd’s eyes lock with mine from every corner of the gallery.  In my favorite,  Ang Dilim…Hindi Na Muna Ako Pipikit (How Dark It Is…I Will Not Close My Eyes), they look at me through a mist, an otherwordly, ghostly gaze.  In Manhid (Indifferent),  they beg in

Ang Dilim...Hindi Na Muna Ako Pipikit

mute appeal, trapped in an unconscionable plight.  In Lynyrd, surrounded by a sheen of black, one set of eyes look away, unable to meet mine, as harsh, painful words spurt from his lips, while the other set expresses regret, beseeching forgiveness. In Wala ng Plano Plano (Forget Making Plans), his eyes turn dead, determinedly closed, immune from feeling.  In the last of his self-portraits,  Apoy…Nakakasilaw (Blinded by Flame), sunglasses deliberately shield him, closing off his vulnerability.  

Manhid

Wala Nang Plano Plano

Apoy... Nakasilaw

As in every piece he does, Lynyrd does not fear letting it all out, bringing his pain and rawness to the fore.  We feel his jumbled thoughts, articulated as shadowed layers of texts and figures that hover beneath the surface of his images.  We wonder what he has gone through to curse himself as blackhearted.  More than his incredible skill as an artist, more than the excitement that his future will surely generate, we know that when we acquire a Lynyrd Paras work, we bring home a piece of the man himself.

Sirain Mo Ako

 Against His Blackhearted World, 3rd Solo Show is on view from 14  to 31 December 2008 at Blanc Compound,  359 Shaw Blvd, Mandaluyong City.  Phone (632)752-0032 www.blanc.ph  and www.lynyrdboxes.com

Ngayon Sabihin Mo Paano Mo Pa Ako Masasaktan

TutoK Tackles Crisis; Mike Goes Eclectic

Detail: Neil Pasilan Installation

TUTOKKK:  KRISIS, KALUNASAN…ANONG K MO? AT BLANC COMPOUND

Three years ago, a core group of concerned artists came together to make a stand against the spate of extra-judicial killings that hit unrecognized, anonymous, mostly rural, Filipinos.  Since then, this loosely-organized band of artists, headed by Manny Garibay and Karen Flores, have made it

Manny Garibay and Racquel de Loyola

tradition to put together an exhibit on or around December 1, Human Rights Day.  To quote core member Noel Soler Cuizon, “Tutok employs art as medium, message, and motivation” to call attention to important issues affecting our daily lives, collaborating with NGOs like KARAPATAN and educational institutions such as the University of Sto. Tomas, St. Scholastica’s College, and Ateneo de Manila University.

For this, their anniversary show with an array of over a hundred 18 x 24 inch works, TutoK challenges both artists and the community at large:  what do you make of a nation, and a world, in financial crisis?

The show is on view from 30 November to 10 December 2008 at Blanc Compound, 359 Shaw Blvd, Mandaluyong, Ph: (632)752-0080 www.blanc.ph

Mark Andy Garcia and Lynyrd Paras

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Entrance Installation by Don Salubayba

By Bogie Ruiz

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Detail: Mimi Tecson Collage

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By Jay Pacena

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ECLECTIC BY MICHAEL CACNIO

Michael Cacnio’s brass sculptures, with their decorative, often humorous, take on everyday Philippine life may seem poles apart from TutoK’s more

Detail: Subok

thought-provoking pieces.  Mike’s works are easy and whimsical and popular; his shows quickly sell out.  But the underlying viewpoint perhaps falls within the same spectrum: that of celebrating one’s Pinoyness with aplomb, no matter what life hands you.

Buking!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Eclectic by Michael Cacnio, 24 November to 7 December 2008  at 1/0f Gallery, The Shops at Serendra, Bonifacio Global City, Ph (632)901-3152 Email:  1of.gallery@gmail.com

Like by Pam Yan-Santos

Like can mean so many different things.  Like as akin to.  Like as a predisposition for. Like to denote approval of.  When you view  Pam Yan-Santos’ latest solo show, you come to understand that like also reveals the longing that a young mother hopes for the future of her son. 

Color the Picture

 

 

 

 

 

 

All Pam’s seven pieces revolve around Juno, her only child.  In Color  the Picture, he gets his hair cut, the first time without embracing arms to   support him,  the repeated clicking of metal shears  inducing unavoidable unease.  In Open Line two children, a boy and a girl, stand not quite close enough, yet not too far apart, their eyes almost, but not really, making contact.  What does the future hold for the chance of relationships?  Positive Thoughts  turns into a mantra chanted repeatedly by a young father to keep his frustrations at bay. We forget that the innocuous birthday party of Make A Cake! Make A Cake,  all pink and pretty and filled with balloons, actually serves as a child’s first foray into social relationships, a chance for friendships forged or awkwardness magnified.  In the diptych Circle Time  boys come together and play.  In the revelry and boisterousness of their games, who can detect who is different?

Open Line

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Positive Thoughts

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The richness of Pam’s work lies in her success at combining her skills as both printmaker and painter.  The multiple layers of serigraphs and silk screens, finished off by her acrylic images, all come together in one impeccable, robust, textured, completely satisfying whole.  I like.

Circle Time

Like by Pam Yan-Santos is on view at Blanc Compound from 3 to 21 Nov. 2008.  Blanc Compound is at 359 Shaw Blvd., Mandaluyong City.  Log on to www.blanc.ph or call (632) 752-0032 for more details.  Exhibit is curated by Leo Abaya

Hello Everybody

Pam with Eileen Ramirez of the Lopez Museum