PHUKET, Thailand—Why do sex workers always figure in a scenography where they lean on the ledge of a balcony, their hair undulating in volume or in chaos, while smoking a cigarette? Does the smoke from the cigarette bear the air exchanged in the lip-locking kisses, the promises of romance, and the depths of intimacy, only...
Category: Visual Arts
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The eternal returns of the day
As we enter another year, another period emerges where we try to recollect the life we have lived and measure its worth. Precisely, in the passing of such a life, a part of ourselves fails to move on and ends up left in the past, and in the process of how such a past deserts...
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Baguio artists’ battle cry: Give us our due, treat us with respect
BAGUIO CITY—This is no tempest in a teapot, this hue and cry over the destruction of the Ibagiw mural of visual and performance artist Angelo Aurelio without notice to him and upon the instructions of a tourism official in charge of the yearly arts and culture festival. (“Ibagiw” is an Ibaloi term to mean “someone...
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‘Alon’ is a call for public awareness of plastic pollution and marine protection
The Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation (RMAF), in partnership with the De La Salle College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB), has brought the acclaimed exhibit titled “Alon” to the Ramon Magsaysay Center in Malate, Manila. Focused on the issue of plastic waste in the oceans, and with surfers as a central theme, “Alon” is the RMAF’s first...
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Iloilo marks Asean Month with a powerful display of Southeast Asian art
ILOILO CITY—In celebration of Asean Month, Iloilo is presenting a powerful display of Southeast Asian art and the region’s rich artistic heritage. At the heart of the event is the unveiling of “Connecting Borders: A Collection of Southeast Asian Art” at the Iloilo Museum of Contemporary Art (Ilomoca). The landmark exhibition launched on Aug. 9...
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Marrz Capanang opens 6th solo show; ‘Art for Everyone 2025’ ongoing
ILOILO CITY—The artist Marrz Capanang opens “Mga Kalibutan/Realms,” his sixth solo exhibition, today, July 19, at the Iloilo Museum of Contemporary Art. “Kalibutan,” a Visayan term meaning “world,” “universe,” or “realm of existence,” sets the tone for a collection rooted in mysticism, animism, and cosmology. Known for weaving the Hiligaynon language with visual poetics, Capanang...
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The ‘Paghili-usa’ mural is a tribute to Ilonggo spirit, culture and history
ILOILO CITY—A mural is the latest addition to Iloilo’s growing collection of public art. Walking along Esplanade 8, where the Iloilo River meets Muelle Loney Street near the Capitol, you must have noticed a vibrant mural brightening the corner of Solis Street. That eye-catching art work is titled “Paghili-usa,” and it has transformed a wall marked...
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The continuing war under the glass ceiling
Whenever World War II serves as a reference point of a conversation, I imagine such a period through the sonic register of disorder, disruption, and explosion, a city turned into ground zero. From the archives, moving images, cinema, and literature, Manila figures into the frames as a place where the legacies of Spanish and American...
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‘Halángdon’: The art and legacy of National Artist J. Elizalde Navarro
“Halángdon” at the Fine Arts Gallery of the National Museum of the Philippines-Iloilo showcases the profound and multifaceted legacy of National Artist Jerry Elizalde Navarro. The exhibit demonstrates Navarro’s experimentation in and mastery of sculpture, painting, and a variety of printmaking methods. It embodies a fusion of his modernist sensibilities and evolving style, conveying themes of...
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Bringing art from the galleries to the streets of Naga City
PILI, Camarines Sur—People typically go to air-conditioned rooms, enclosed building spaces, and narrow hallways to experience art. One artist, Manuel Dondon Medenilla, has made a dramatic distinction. Medenilla is holding an exhibition of his paintings, acrylic on canvas, on a sidewalk of Magsaysay Avenue in Naga City, to literally bring art closer to other people...