Infectious: Christopher Zamora

Urbanization in the country today is escalating in an inevitable degree due to the immense proliferation of popular media such as the television, radio, magazines, and the internet. It has subjected loads of young people to a consumerist “what’s hot and trendy” lifestyle, transforming them into a massive agent of popular culture. Despite the worsening extent of poverty in the country, these young people still seek the importance of being identified as a citizen of the modern world, thus creating a culture of “show-offs.” Their intake of countless popular symbols, icons, music, language, style and fashion represent a kind of ideology, a defense or protection for survival.

The variety of emblems they carry, be it emo, punk or bling-bling clearly defines the group they want to be classified, and such grouping has spelled greater influence on the development or decay of their psychological and intellectual maturity. The effects of socio-economic instability, rapid developments in mass media and technology, has caused adverse consequences in the behavior of the youth, engaging themselves to risky activities such as smoking, drinking, drug use, gang wars, sex and violence.

Infectious magnifies images of young people who incessantly reinvents and replicates identities as an aid to conceal and liberate spirits.

Infectious
West Gallery
26.2-26.3,2009

Charlie Co: Images in Black

Bacolod artist Charlie Co, known for his vibrant and loud colors in his oil on canvas paintings, experiments this time on large-scale drawings done in charcoal on paper in his upcoming show “IMAGES IN BLACK” at Gallery Orange. Using charcoal as his medium, this style is new to Co, but he still achieves in his story-telling in the images in his latest artworks as he always does in oil paintings.

Images in Black opens on Feb. 6 at 6pm. Show will run until Feb. 15. Gallery Orange is located at the 2nd Flr., Lopue’s Annex Bldg, Mandalagan. For more details, please contact Carmel at 7090604 or email gallery.orange@yahoo.com.

NEAR Manila Artists-In-Residence 2009

Project Space Pilipinas is proud to present the roster of selected artists for the Neo-Emerging Artists-in-Residence, Manila 2009.

Jinsuk Che (b. 1979, Seoul, Korea) is currently finishing her Ph.D. in Digital Media Design, Media Technology at the So-Gang University in Seoul, South Korea. She holds an MS in Art and Technology at Chung-Ang University in 2005 and BFA in painting at the Sung-Kyun-Kwan University, in 2002. Jinsuk had her first solo exhibition in 2005 titled “Behind Story_Teasing,” a multi-media exhibition she presented during her residency at the International Artists Studio Program, Korea (IASK Goyang) of the National Museum of Contemporary Art, Seoul, Korea. The following year, she was selected for the OCAT International Artist Residency in Shenzhen, China, where she had her second solo exhibition titled “Project Utopia in China: Dream in Shenzhen” at He Xiangning Art Museum. Other residencies she participated include, Nakatue Village Art Camp, Oita, Japan in 2002 and AFI Seoksu Market Project, Anyang, Korea in 2007. In 2008, she had two solo exhibitions, “Air Castle” at Kwanhoon Gallery and “Project SONAGI: Fading World,” a media and performance collaboration at Moonshin Museum, Seoul. Jinsuk has been participating in several new media and public art group exhibitions since 2002, some notable exhibitions include “Pleasure Factory” Seoul Museum of Art and “Book Resembles People, People Resembles Books” Kumho Museum, 2003, “Bikini in Winter” Alternative Space Loop, Seoul and “Great Expectation” OCAT Art Terminal, Shenzhen, China, 2006, “Wild animals go to the city” Seoul Culture and Art Foundation, 2007 and “Media Roleplaying: Relativity” Incheon Media Art Festival 2008, Pupyung History Museum, Incheon, Korea. Just recently, she opened “Art Space Plastic” an independent artist-run space located within the compound of her family’s plastic recycling factory.

Crisanto de Leon (b. 1981, Manila) graduated at the Philippine Women’s University, BFA in Painting in 2006. He had participated in numerous group exhibitions since 2002 including “Recent Works 4” Kulay Diwa Art Galleries, “Deklarasyon” Cubicle Gallery in 2004, “My Personal Saviour” UP Corridor Gallery in 2005, and “Boxed” Big Sky Mind Alternative Space in 2006. Cris had also joined some notable group exhibitions which include “Mga Pahina’t Kwadro Alay sa Manggagawa” Liongoren Art Gallery, “Boxed Exhibit 2007” Cultural Center of the Philippines, “Tutok Kasaysayang: Unang Yugto” Glorietta Artspace Makati in 2007. In 2008, he exhibited in “Boys Don’t Cry” Nineveh Artspace, “Wrong number” Big and Small Art Gallery, and “TutoKKK” Blanc Gallery in Makati City. He is an active member of TUTOK Artists Initiative and plays guitar for BYSTORM, a hardcore band based in Manila.

Michael Alvin Adrao (b. 1973) studied fine arts major in painting at the University of the Philippines, College of Fine Arts in 1998. He had participated in some notable group exhibitions, including “Ang Delatang Pinoy: Yes, the Filipino Can!” at Hiraya Gallery and “Mula Filibustero Hanggang Kay Marimar” in 1996. Mike Adrao was also among the selected artists for the “Young Artists Discovery Series” of Hiraya Gallery where he mounted "Verses" in 1997. His other group exhibitions include “Crossroads” at the Australian Center in 1998, “Songs of Renewal” at Casa San Miguel in Zambales in 1999, “Recent Works 4” and “Urbanisasyon” at Kulay Diwa Art Galleries in 2003. He also participated in MATAHATI’s second fundraising exhibition “Artriangle” at Soka Gakkai in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 2008.

Roedil “Joe” Geraldo (b. 1969, Talisay City, Negros Occidental) studied fine arts major in advertising at the La Consolation College School of Architecture and Fine Arts, in Bacolod City. He had participated in numerous group exhibitions in the Visayas and in Manila as well, some notable exhibitions include “Sungduan” (traveling exhibition organized by NCCA) in 2000, “8th VIVA EXCON (Visayan Islands Visual Art Exhibit and Conference): Best of Negros” in 2004, “Hinugot sa Yutang Pula: 2nd Dumaguete Biennial Terracotta Art Festival and Competition” Dumaguete City in 2007, and “Aramid” Pinto Gallery, Antipolo City, “Three Expressions in Terracotta” Total Gallery, Alliance Francaise de Manille, “Anyo” Art Informal in 2008. Joe Geraldo is a consistent finalist in the Philip Morris Philippine Art Awards from 2003 to 2008, and an awardee of several sculpture and painting competitions in the region. Conscientiously producing massive pieces in two and three-dimensional forms, he had held six solo exhibitions including “Oras 1” La Salle Museum, Bacolod City, in 1996, “Time 2” Negros Museum, Bacolod City, in 2001, “Halad sa Duta” Kaida Gallery, Quezon City, in 2007 and his most recent, “Putik” Negros Museum, Bacolod City, in 2008.

Israel Mark Gonzales (b. 1984, Bacolod City, Negros Occidental) graduated at La Consolation College School of Architecture and Fine Arts, Bacolod City, major in painting in 2006. He was finalist at the Shell National Student Art Competition in 2005, 2004 and semifinalist at the Metrobank Foundation’s Art and Design Excellence (MADE) National Competition also in 2004. He had attended various art-related workshops including “Art Barrage: Young Artists Discovery” sponsored by the Metrobank Foundation Inc. and Black Artists in Asia in 2003, and “Negros Museum Summer Creative Art Workshop” in Bacolod City in 2005. Some of notable group exhibitions he had participated include “8th VIVA EXCON (Visayan Islands Visual Art Exhibit and Conference): Best of Negros” in 2004, “Pasidungog,” Orange Gallery in 2005, “9th VIVA EXCON: Punias” Samar, Leyte in 2006, “2nd Dumaguete Biennial Terracotta Art Festival and Competition” Dumaguete in 2007, and “Three Expressions in Terracotta” Total Gallery, Alliance Francaise de Manille, in 2008.

2nd NEAR Artist-in-Residence: Christopher Zamora

Introspection can never exist in a vacuum. The slightest twitching of the senses from outside stimuli is what inspires Christopher Zamora to believe so. His raw manipulation of light and dark on canvas bleeds power by exposing sharp realities that seem banal at first glance. Silip is emphatically shouting of dependence on the hypnosis by technology while Pasang-Krus presents the mirage of a Western “skaterboy” culture and the menial tasks unique to Filipino experiences. With them, the individual now becomes the extension of ideas beyond their explicit actions and opens an internal debate shying away from plain sight.

The contrition of the soul is manifest in the charade of the body in the piece Action and Reaction by demonstrating anguish after a torturous affair. This pain is a common compounding of the personal and social issues in play in every subject of Zamora’s work. Although in chaos, they are perfect images of the symphony of problems and escape harbored within the common individual.

They are indeed two-dimensional yet the depths of every stroke placed on these static contrivances convey a dare. They are challenges to examine and continually reexamine life without the trappings of norms built by stubborn beliefs and acceptances. Some may even have the arrogant conviction that they are staring at the images but the converse may also be true. These colors on textile gaze back like a mirror soaked with our own reflections to ask who we truly are as a people and as sentient persons. http://chzamora108.multiply.com (Art Staring Back by Lloyd Capilit Llaga)

Leslie de Chavez: Banana Republic

The gallery Avanthay Contemporary, Zurich proudly presents the work of the Philippine artist, Leslie de Chavez (*1978, Manila), in his solo exhibition entitled "Banana Republic".

"The state of the nation wasn't to be found in the words, it was to be found in the images." (Conrado de Quiros, columnist, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 30th July, 2008)

The Philippines proudly call itself a democratic country. The reality is in fact different. According to recent studies and surveys, the Philippines are one of the most corrupt countries in all of Asia. The World Bank estimates that over two billion US dollars go missing yearly due to corruption. And the corruption is growing incessantly year for year. Political murders, disappearances of people, offences against human rights, fraud, theft and violence are ever increasing. Seldom does the government take action to stop these offences. The president Gloria Macapal Arroyo has withstood two separate impeachment hearings, diverse corruption scandals and accusations of elections result manipulation. Corruption has reached such extraordinary proportions that many Philippines existences have been destroyed due to the continuing decay of the social and political situation there.

With this exhibit, "Banana Republic", artist Leslie de Chavez would like to raise awareness of these abuses that have occurred in his country. For Chavez the symbol of the banana in his title "Banana Republic" is significant. The symbol of the banana re-appears in an aggrandized or inflated state, indicative of the corruption it may represent. The dusk atmosphere in his images is evoked not only through his subject matter, but also through the color of his canvas; Chavez paints on black linen. His style evokes images of the German-American artist, graphic designer und Caricaturist George Grosz (1893-1959) who became known for his critical depiction of society in his paintings and drawings. Similar to Grosz, Chavez provokes and criticizes with and through his work. In his painting titled "The medium is the message", Chavez quotes Media Theorist Marshall McLuhan, author of the famous book with the same title, which Chavez read during his studies. "The medium is the message" stands for the symbols or the elements in his painting, such as for example fish bones, the basket with the bananas or the camera. These symbols represent attributes of a figure or of an image. The message of these symbols is, however, directed not only towards the figure it represents but also and most especially towards the viewer. www.avanthaycontemporary.com (- Simone Toellner, Avanthay Contemporary)