Iloilo is a junction over
which Malay, Spanish, Chinese, and American cultures have met in the course of
centuries. This stretches back to a rich pre-colonial culture, and the arrival
of settlers, the Malayans sometime in May 1212.
It is this multi-cultural
milieu that Ilonggo artists have found their true “voices”, expressed in their
respective styles.
Many earlier Ilonggo
artists were self- taught because of the absence of fine arts courses in the
province. What harnessed their talents
and skills was the role of the art group Hubon Madiaas, which served as the
prime mover of cultural activities in Panay.
With that, Ilonggo
artists are products of the admixture of natural endowment in art, presence of
cultural activities to participate, challenge of peers and a courageous resolve
to continue their art regardless of the
lack of patronage by the public in general.
Today, with the rise of
local schools offering courses in the arts, Iloilo, has been considered as the
second best next to the National
Capital Region in terms
of visual arts maturity and development based on the National Commission on
Culture and the Arts survey. And it is on its way to becoming a viable center
for contemporary art.
A joint project of SM,
the Metropolitan Museum of Manila, Shell Philippines, The Philippine Star, with support from the National Commission for Culture and the Arts and Centerstage Productions, My City, My
SM, My Art is a celebration of Philippine visual arts – painting, sculpture,
printmaking, photography, and filmmaking.
The campaign brings art
and people together by showcasing the works of masters, modernists, and
millennials in a road show around the SM Supermalls. Advocating art for all,
the team works with communities to mount exhibits, workshops, and contests in
key cities around the Philippines.
Guests who attended the
event were the family members of master artist Ed Defensor, sister-in-law and Iloilo Province First Lady Cosette Defensor, and sister Suzette Tonogbanua, Councilor Jay Treñas, and Iloilo City Executive Assistant for Tourism Ding Co.
SM officials led by SM
Senior Vice President for Marketing Millie
Dizon and SM City Iloilo Mall Manager Gilbert
Domingo welcomed them.
Guests enjoyed the
program, which included an AVP presentation hosted by Atty.
Richard Bermejo Perillo featuring
the master artists of Iloilo and their amazing works. These works were exhibited in and around the
My Art Gallery, which was inspired by the Panay House.
Some of the featured
artists during the launch were Kris Brasileño
an artist with a purpose. While skilled in painting and drawing in both
traditional and digital mediums, he also aims to help create a thriving art
community in his hometown;
Kat Malazarte,
a Cum Laude graduate of the University of San Agustin, where she took a
Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting course, Kat says that it is her ultimate
dream to make artworks that inspire people, make them feel the light, and stay
wide-eyed and child –like;
Alex Ordoyo
, a visual Arts teacher in Iloilo National High School for the Art who hopes to
pass on his proficiency in and passion for
the arts to his students;
Ethel Mae Reyes, a visual artist,
photographer and an award winning filmmaker; and Cezar Arro, whose works are inspired by heavy metal music, and with
that, reflect the morbid, the dark, and the struggle of everyday life, and now
have embraced modern contemporary art with less dark subjects.
Other artists featured
are Jose Jeline Laporga, whose works
have won numerous awards including First Place in the prestigious 2012 GSIS National Open Art Competition in
the Abstract category;
Sculptor Martin
Genodepa who was born and raised in a serene and close to nature
environment in Guimbal, derived his spirituality and creative energy from an
alchemy of nature and awakened consciousness further stimulated by artists
affiliated with the academe;
Jeanroll
Ejar grew up watching artisans making wooden furniture for his family’s
business. Today, he can carve almost anything from wood –in the family owned
foundry in Bitoon, Jaro;
Gina Apostol
who began her foray into the arts with
ceramics and terracotta using local clay
found in Lemery and Sara near Iloilo city. In 2006, she held a one woman show,
a Celebration of Panay Churches, rendered in clay relief;
Marrz Capanang, A BS
Fine Arts graduate of the University of San Agustin, Marzz describes himself as
an inspirational painter. He draws inspiration from nature, daily activities of
the Ilonggos and their everyday lives,
Vic
Fario who is known for his murals in different provinces like the Quezonian
Mural in Quezon Province, which was unveiled by then President Gloria Macapagal
Årroyo in 2005, the Tiagon Mural in Camarines Sur, and the Our Lady of the
Angels Chapel Mural in Tibauan, Iloilo;
PG Zoluaga, a visual artist who has won
numerous awards: the 1998 Philippine Arts Awards Jurors' Choice winner, the
1999 Philippine representative to the ASEAN Arts Awards in Hanoi, Vietnam, and
had the 1998 Best Entry in the Centennial Painting Competition of the Art
Association of the Philippines; Young artist
Harry Mark Gonzales who has brought much honor to his hometown when
he was awarded as the Grand Prize Winner in the 2007 Metrobank Art and Design
for Excellence competition;
and Pierre
Patricio who currently represents the Philippines in the United Buddy Bears
World Tour Exhibition in aid of UNICEFF. His paintings and sculptures are in
private and public collections throughout Asia, Europe, the Middle East and
North America.
Highlight of the event is
the tribute for master artist Ed
Defensor. He is the founder for the group “Hubon Madiaas” in the 1980s when he was asked by then UPV
Chancellor Rola to help artists in Iloilo. The group has inspired many of the
Ilonggo artists and have led the way for
them in the region’s cultural and arts scene. In the first workshop of Hubon,
National Artist Joya, his mentor in
UP Diliman, was the resource person. The
group later held exhibits in their gallery in Jaro with visitors from
Manila. Today, Hubon Madiaas is the
oldest and most accomplished art group in Iloilo.
The man behind Hubon,
master artist Ed Defensor, remembers
that he used to play with ant hill soil in his hometown in Mina, Iloilo. He molded
them into toys of his choice until the childhood hobby ceased to be a play and
was transformed into a well-acclaimed artistic career.
Although he initially
resisted taking a fine arts course – finishing Comparative Literature in UP
Iloilo and later a Master’s degree in UP Diliman instead – he eventually made
way for his art inclinations by painting stage backdrops, becoming an artist of the UP monthly, and getting
involved with the theater group.
But one’s love for art
conquers all, and since that time, Defensor has had a fulfilling career as an
associate professor in the Division of Humanities in UP Visayas, and is a
visual and performing artist as well.
Certainly one of the most
active working in Iloilo today, he commutes between several art media: the
theater and visual arts, particularly sculpture and painting.
Much of Defensor’s work
can in fact be traced to a dance, a performance medium he used in his theater
productions.
Whether in sculptural or
painting mediums, the figures have the intensity of expression, graceful
movements that can be gleaned from the hands, feet, heads, and overall drama of
the composition.
With its aim of bringing
art and people together, My City, My SM, My Art also conducted Woodcut
Printmaking workshop. Carvin Traspaderme
won the top prize, for which he received P5,000 worth of SM Gift Certificates.
My
City, My SM, My Art is a take-off from the previous My City, My SM campaign
which promotes tourism, My City, My SM, My Cuisine, which highlights regional
culinary specialties, and My City, My SM, My Crafts, a celebration of
traditional art and modern Philippine design in cities where SM has malls. My City, My SM, My Art’s next stop will be in
SM City Clark.
