Foundation News

Dramaturgical Revelations of
Everyday Life
26 February — 1 June 2008
Kawilihan Gallery, 2/F
UP Vargas Museum, Roxas Ave., UP Diliman

In line with the College of Arts and Letters’ Komedya Fiesta 2008 and in celebration of the University of the Philippines’ Centenary, the UP Jorge B. Vargas Museum (UPVM) opens Dramaturgical Revelations of Everyday Life on 26 February 2008 (Tuesday), 5:30 pm. The exhibition features artworks from the UPVM Art Collection that focus on the dramatic representations of everyday life. It also addresses important issues on the links between modes of artistic representation and perception and brings to the fore a different curatorial style.

This exhibition provides a multi-sensory experience for the audience by incorporating a series of field recordings plotting ambient aural phenomena such as people talking in a market place, birds chirping in the rural area and thunderstorm heard over rainfall. While complementing and expanding the artistic experience, the juxtaposition of visual and aural elements is non-linear and therefore neither situates nor shapes the historical context of the painted scenes.

Dramaturgical Revelations showcases genre paintings done by early 20th century Filipino artists including Fernando Amorsolo, Dominador Castaneda, Ireneo Miranda, H.R. Ocampo, Florentino Macabuhay, Simeon Galvez, Lauro Alcala and Ricarte Puruganan.

Dramaturgical Revelations will run until 1 June 2008. For details, please contact Linda at numbers 928-1927 (direct line) / 981-8500 local 4024/23, or email us at vargasmuseum@gmail.com.

You are invited to the opening of Erwin Leano’s “Passages”, an exhibit of Leano’s recent works in oil on canvas at Art Informal, 277 Connectictut St., Greenhills East, Mandaluyong, on Monday, December 10, at 6:30PM.

The works bring forth the artist’s sere demeanor, culminating into one tranquil moment. The perfectly minimal compositions open up endless possibilities for the viewer.

For inquiries, please call 725-8518 or 0918-8992698.

Charlie Co
“Portraits of China Men”
Galleria Duemila
December 8-31, 2007

Galleria Duemila will be exhibiting the recent works of Filipino artist, Charlie Co, this December 8th, 2007, titled, “Portraits of China Men“. The exhibit will run until the end of the month.

Born in Negros, Bacolod, in 1960, he co-founded a group called “The Black Artists of Asia” who became known for their politically and socially motivated artworks: which still is evident in his recent work. He uses art to provoke, to inspire, to make one reflect upon current issues. His art is political, capturing the sentiment with a surrealist’s hand, since the 1980s, which were politically turbulent times. He paints it as he sees it, as he experiences it. The result is a dramatic portrayal of the time, the issues, without being dated, instead becoming timeless.

Co has exhibited not only in the Philippines, but internationally. He has been featured in articles and acclaimed by critics. His art has always been intrinsically Filipino, but now it has evolved into a global being.

This exhibit is the result of Charlie Co’s stay in China earlier this year. He sees China through the eyes of a Chinoy, or Chinese-Filipino. It is interesting to see the result of this profound experience, the canvases are bursting with color and what seems like playful imagery, yet the stories behind them are quite serious.

In “Minister of Health” for instance — he shows a Chinese man wearing a gas mask and wearing a coat peppered with skulls. He plays with irony, without a bit of sarcastic humor-that the Health Minister, despite his position in the government, whose concern is health and yet wears a gas mask, shows that pollution is a tough problem to solve as it is being experienced now in China.

He depicts his Chinamen all wearing bowler hats and western clothing- as now China is being recognized as a world powerplayer, much as the Western super powers are. There is the shift now back to the East from the West, and Charlie Co takes this and records this time on his canvasses. He is a global artist, as well as being a Filipino one. He tackles issues and ideas through his paintings, perhaps with a bit of irony and humor, digging deeper into the psyche of societies, of government, pushing boundaries and removing our blinders. He shows us what sometimes our minds refuse to see…and he does it with color and bold strokes, showing us reality through surrealism.

“I try to record the political time with my art, painting global political landscapes, but I have not even scratched the surface.”
- Charlie Co

For exhibition inquiries, please call (63) 831-9990 and (63) 833-9815, or email duemila@mydestiny.net or visit www.galleriaduemila.com. Galleria Duemila is located at 210 Loring St. Pasay City, Philippines. The gallery is open everyday except Sundays and holidays.

Crossing Bounderies
A solo exhibit by
Anton Del Castillo

December 1 to 10, 2007
Art Space, 3rd Level,
Glorietta 4, Ayala Malls

Exhibit Hours:
Monday to Thursday, 10 am to 8:00 pm &
Friday to Sunday, 10 am to 9:00 pm

Exhibit Cocktails:
Saturday, December 1, 2007
7:00 - 9:00 pm

Anton Del Castillo is a painter of Modern Icons. In his complex, attractively colored paintings done in gold leaf panels, Anton fuses the sacred visual language of Byzantine Art through the use of contemporary iconic images in creating human suffering and pleas of salvation and peace, embedded within the modern day conflict between Christians and Muslims.

He recently completed a six-month grant from The Rockefeller Foundation through the Asian Cultural Council Hong Kong and The Sovereign Art Foundation Hong Kong to study Byzantine art in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington D.C., and concluded a residency program at the International Studio and Curatorial Program in Manhattan, New York.

A group photo exhibit entitled Kodakan will definitely give art and photography enthusiasts something to cheer about this holiday season.

Kodakan brings to the fore the art making versatility of visual artists Plet Bolipata, Elmer Borlongan, Ruel Caasi, Carlo Gabuco, Dennis Leonardo, Ferdie Montemayor, Mikel Parial and Mario Parial. Renowned for their art in various media, the artists, who are all photo buffs, have been using an online image-sharing service for the past year for their private appreciation of each other’s photographic art.

Kodakan is the group’s first public foray in the medium of photography. With the cooperation of DPI Photography Center, the show will feature a wide range of subjects as each artist will present a unique way of seeing the world.

Exhibit opens on December 7, 2007 (Friday) at 6:00 pm and will run until January 5, 2008. Kaida Gallery is located at the 2nd Floor GFO Building, 122 Kamuning Road, Diliman, Quezon City. For inquiries, call 414-4777 or log on to www.kaidagallery.com.