Alt Philippines, the premier art show once again sets the standard for showing contemporary art examples of local talent.
The upcoming Alt Philippines features a roster of fascinating and intriguing artworks. The premier art show collaborates with 10 galleries that feature over 150 veteran and up-and-coming artists, each of them bringing to life the visions of the gallery they represent through an immersive experience.
With large-scale installations, multi-colored artworks, and gripping paintings, visitors can expect to see different works from the artists of West Gallery, Vinyl on Vinyl, Artinformal, Blanc, Finale Art File, Galleria Duemila, MO_Space, The Drawing Room, Underground, and 1335 Mabini. Opening on February 14-16, 2020, art lovers will certainly get carried away in connecting and engaging with the masterpieces of the contemporary arts in the Philippines.
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Martin Honasan
Drawing inspiration from his residence in Marikina, Martin depicts the city’s condition in the aftermath of the typhoon season. He captures the images and sensations of destruction and rebuilding through watercolor, acrylic, and collage.
He makes up portraits of his fellow Marikenyos by dissolving paint in ‘mud,’ resembling the devastation after a flood. With works grounded on this reality, audiences can expect to see the many facets of ruin after a natural tragedy, and perhaps even derive a sense of non-traditional beauty from it.
Raffy Napay
Working with threads demands attention to detail and technical skills. Raffy may have initially joined the art scene with oil paintings but after discovering the art of sewing, he gave a whole new contribution to the industry and the contemporary arts in the Philippines.
Multicolored threads stitched or tufted into a canvas make up a story, most of which are tales of love from his childhood memories. The intricately sewn fabrics give a new definition to wall-mounted canvases, making them seem like beautiful tapestries.
Annie Cabigting
The nature of Annie’s artworks raises different commentary and reactions. Throughout her career, she involves iconic paintings of masters like Jackson Pollock and Robert Chabet.
With her style, people tend to critique notions of replication, imitation, and even authorship. After all, works of art as subject matters can pose a sensitive concern. Yet the artist chooses to focus on treating these iconic works as natural parts of our visual landscape.
With an unorthodox art style, audiences can delight in creating their own commentary on how her own works, and of others, can be perceived. This contemporary art will be featured at the Alt Philippines.
Tekla Tamoria
With a fondness for doing origami beyond her day former job as a graphic designer, Tekla fostered it to create life-sized sculptures. Now a full-time artist, among her fascinating works are wearable dresses made of multi-colored recycled paper.
One might assume she paints over these scraps of paper yet many get surprised with how she actually sorts the pieces according to color. She does similar techniques with other installations. Her Grace Period is a work suggesting ordinary office workers having rectangular buildings for their bodies.
With her imagination, cleverness, skill, and patience for creating these assemblages, people can expect more captivating works.
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Archie Oclos
Having received multiple awards in art competitions within the country, Archie is among the artists who shed light on national issues.
Among his murals, street art, and large scale works explore concerns of indigenous people and farmers. It only makes sense as he comes from a working-class family. He has first-hand experiences of the struggles that come with his background and he draws inspiration from them for his artworks. Through heavy brushstrokes of industrial paint, he directs attention to social awareness.
Audiences can expect to feel different emotions from Archie’s works. Yet the most essential is harnessing the sense of responsibility about the social concerns in the country.
Pam Yan Santos
Creating multiple layers with depth and meaning is the signature art style of Pam. The layers represent and evoke different emotions, harnessed from personal experiences.
It requires the meticulous effort of assembling a collage of varying materials, turning the process meaningful. Yet once the new form is complete, the installations offer the audience a whole different experience.
It is up to them to engage with the new structure as Pam underscores the Gestalt ideology of how the “whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” Thus, Pam’s works invite to see beyond the individual parts and appreciate what materializes from its collage.
Alfredo and Isabel Aquilizan
The husband and wife duo has been working together on large-scale installations. Having emigrated to Australia about 14 years ago, Alfredo and Isabel’s works depict the narratives of the diasporic movement.
With people constantly moving across countries to settle in new places, we are no stranger to the feelings brought by changes. Whether these happen in memory or in physical aspects like geography and its community, there is always a story to tell from migratory experiences.
Carina Santos
Using illustrations, photographs, and watercolor, Carina explores the relation of space to its subject or at times, space as the subject itself.
Through creating landscapes, the artist expresses this profound examination. With the connections she forms, she invites audiences to identify other relationships as the images converse with one another.
The shared language and the emotions evoked make for an interesting endless cycle of engaging with her works.
Liv Vinluan
While known for her three-dimensional paintings, Liv also uses different media. She would merge reality with fantasy, taking a drive from her environment and the made-up content she consumes. She also stitches garments, creating a melancholic work intense with movement.
Her clever arrangement of the design tells a new perspective on stories of people whether the past or the present.
World of Art
In the realm of art, every stroke of the brush, every burst of color, and every installation tells a story, and it’s a story waiting to be interpreted by each observer.
So, as you step out of this artistic sanctuary, carry with you the memories and emotions stirred by these masterpieces.
