Taliwala | May 9 - 30, 2026 Taliwala Jessa Balag May 9 - 30, 2026 DSC01652.JPG 1/4 View Catalogue Video Press Release How Thoughtful, How Taliwala Jessa Balag has long painted from places close to home. The daughter of a baker and a homemaker, she first became known for works shaped by bread. Objects tied to labor and nourishment appeared throughout her paintings and installations as markers of everyday survival and intimacy. In Taliwala, her exhibition of recent works, the artist continues this sensitivity toward ordinary objects by turning her attention to the humble brown paper bag. It may be cheap, disposable, and often unnoticed, but for her, it is deeply tied to memory and upbringing. This supot is used to hold piping hot pandesal fresh from the oven, its surface absorbing warmth, oil, and the scent of bread in early mornings. It is also used for takeout food, packed lunches, baon, and pasalubong. Moving quietly through daily life, it becomes more than simple packaging. It becomes a symbol of caregiving, nourishment, and the quiet labor of preparing something for another person. It passes from hand to hand without ceremony, yet it carries traces of affection and thoughtfulness. Taliwala is a Cebuano word that refers to being in the middle, the space between departure and arrival. Balag began production for the exhibition by asking herself a simple question: why do people travel, and where are we all going? Behind every trip is a reason that cannot always be seen. Some travel to work, to provide. Some leave home carrying food, gifts, or necessities for others. In these works, travel is shown as an act tied closely to responsibility, love, devotion, and hope. And that special package you carry from one point to another. The paper bag becomes a vessel for these unseen motivations. Its contents are often hidden, but what it represents feels deeply familiar. In one work on canvas, a man clutches a large paper bag that contains fragments of memory and domestic life in well-loved picture frames. In another, multiple bags hover above a young figure like thoughts or a rainshower of takeout food suspended in midair. One bag frames a boy’s animated face as he finds a treasure probably previously wrapped as a surprise. The ordinary object becomes psychological and symbolic without losing its connection to real life. The exhibition also includes ten painted and sculptural paper bags constructed with epoxy, each functioning as its own container of narrative. Wrinkled surfaces, folded edges, and worn textures are rendered with care, allowing the bags to feel almost soft. Balag paints figures on the brown ground, each face layered with a slice of everyday ephemera: calendars, paper bills, IDs, serving as markers of mundanity. A red ribbon is also part of the artist's imagery, suggesting an unseen bond between people separated by distance and circumstance. Even in moments of isolation, the works imply that people remain tied to one another. In Taliwala, that artist refuses to separate the poetic from the ordinary, finding meaning not in grand gestures, but in the small acts people repeat daily for family, friends, and loved ones. As she continues her creative journey, Balag expands her visual language while remaining rooted in the same concerns that have always shaped her practice. She paints the quiet architecture of care, and the ways ordinary objects become witnesses to human connection. The middle space of travel, that in-between of comings and goings, becomes a space of longing, labor, and tenderness. Kaye O’Yek

Catchments | October 7 - 28, 2023 Catchments Jim Orencio October 7 - 28, 2023 DSC02780.JPG 1/5 View Catalogue Video Press Release Catchments In his latest solo exhibition, Catchments, Jim Orencio invites us into a mesmerizing world where the delicate balance of nature is not just observed but celebrated. Presented by Art Cube, Orencio’s collection breathes life into the canvas, weaving an intricate tapestry of the Arboretum at the Pintô Art Museum. The term “catchments” is not merely a title but a poetic revelation. Defined as areas where rainwater is collected and stored, the term finds its roots in gardening and ecology. In the context of Orencio's exhibition, Catchments symbolizes the inherent significance of water sources in nurturing life. It is a nod to the intricate ecological processes where water serves as a lifeline for the flora and fauna, emphasizing the interconnectedness of all living things. Orencio’s artistic gaze is once again fixed upon the Arboretum of the Pintô Art Museum. Through his brush, he unveils the arboretum’s hidden corners, demonstrating how it serves as an endless wellspring of inspiration. The paintings, adorned with a vividly atmospheric mood, transport the audience into the heart of nature, capturing the essence of the arboretum's diverse and ever-changing landscape. The artist masterfully illustrates the dynamism of nature, especially in areas enriched by water sources. These catchments, depicted with an almost ethereal quality, act as the beating heart of the ecosystem. In Orencio’s world, nature is not a static tableau; it is a living, breathing entity that evolves with each passing moment. Water, as a recurring motif, becomes a symbol of life and transformation, nourishing the environment. Reflecting on his connection with the Arboretum, Orencio shares, “I must say it’s the closest paradise I can be in to learn about nurturing life.” This sentiment transcends the canvas, echoing the artist’s profound connection with the environment. Through his paintings, Orencio doesn't merely capture scenes but becomes a steward of nature, a witness to its vitality and a student of its wisdom. His art, much like the catchments he portrays, becomes a vessel for understanding the delicate balance required for life to flourish. Jim Orencio emerges as a notable painter of nature, cultivating an awareness of its grandeur and beauty. In an era marred by environmental challenges, Orencio's work serves as a gentle reminder of our collective responsibility to protect and preserve the natural world. His paintings act as windows into the intricate dance of life, encouraging the audience to appreciate the subtle nuances of our environment and fostering a sense of urgency to safeguard it. Carlomar Arcangel Daoana Jim Orencio Jim Orencio (b. 1969) is a contemporary Filipino artist based in Antipolo City, Rizal, and has been active since the 1990s. He is best known in the Philippine art scene as a masterful artist of landscapes, a preference informed no less than by his formative years on Tablas Island, Romblon where he was living and farming with his grandparents. After a period of expatriate life and high school in Papua New Guinea, he took up Fine Arts at the University of the Philippines in Diliman, even as he joined the Antipolo-based group Salingpusa. With some members of this group, he established his studio at the Silangan Gardens (later to become the Pinto Art Museum) at the invitation of Dr. Joven Cuanang. Orencio held many of his initial solo and group exhibitions at the Silangan Gardens as well, choosing the environs as his subject. Boston Gallery in Quezon City also featured many of his exhibitions for the next three decades. His work has since diverged into abstraction, collage, and lyrical figurative paintings of Filipiniana but landscape painting has always been a constant. In recent years he especially emphasized the genre of landscape as an exemplary action parallel to his ecological advocacy, after acquiring forested property which he plans to turn into a sustainable farming unit while campaigning to preserve the forest and its river systems. Orencio’s work has been shown in various exhibitions both in the Philippines and abroad.

Hanap/Buhay | February 10, 2024 - March 2, 2024 Hanap/Buhay Elmer Borlongan February 10, 2024 - March 2, 2024 1/7 View Catalogue Video Press Release Hanap/Buhay In his latest exhibition, Hanap/Buhay, Elmer Borlongan masterfully captures the essence of honest labor, paying homage to those who toil closest to nature, the very source of our sustenance. The seven works act as individual or group depictions of workers in various trades, celebrating the dignity inherent in the daily lives of those who, though unsung, tirelessly put food on our plates, despite the threats of globalization and shifting socio-political terrains. Borlongan’s profound connection to Zambales manifests in works that are set against the backdrop of its shores, seas, and sky as well as its landscape with a view of the Pundaquit mountains. In two separate paintings, fishermen proudly present their bountiful catch—the dorado and the majestic blue marlin. The vivid portrayal, with the long tail and snout of the marlin balanced on a stick, captures the symbiotic relationship between man and nature. The solidarity of farmers is eloquently depicted in their shared pose, carrying bags of rice grain. Borlongan chose to paint them as larger-than-life, monumental, emphasizing their essential role in our food chain, reminding us of the interconnectedness of our lives with those who work the land. A different set of farmers, this time in a pineapple plantation, is depicted in a large-scale painting, with the conveyor belt diagonally cutting across the field, as the heads of pineapples rattle and tumble about. From backdrops of nature, a shift to an urban setting introduces a vendor selling street food, reaching out for a coin as payment, or perhaps proffering it as sukli, or change. The viewer assumes the role of the buyer, subtly underscoring the shared human experience of hunger and the satisfaction that comes with satiation. Borlongan’s brushstrokes capture the color, heft, and texture of the different types of street food, from fishballs to siomai in a stick. Because of Borlongan’s choice to situate his subjects within the broader context of the West Philippine Sea, the paintings, while exuding a sense of serenity, shine a spotlight on the precarious nature of the labor, especially that of our fishermen as they navigate not just the unpredictable waters but also geopolitical challenges. The encroachment by foreign powers driving our fishermen from waters that are well within our Exclusive Economic Zone while pillaging the sea’s resources adds a layer of complexity to the narrative of paintings. The artist urges us to reflect on the importance of supporting local industries in our pursuit of food sustainability, as the very livelihoods depicted in his works face threats from beyond the horizon. Hanap/Buhay testifies to Borlongan'ss ability to capture the essential humanity that is endowed on each and everyone of us, particularly those in the margins of society, the so-called laylayan where part of our population still labors hard to escape. Through Borlongan’s remarkable style and sensibility, the exhibition invites viewers to appreciate the dignity of work while urging us to contemplate the delicate balance between man, nature, and forces—inside and outside our shores—that shape our shared future. Carlomar Arcangel Daoana

Reset | August 2 - 30, 2025 Reset Kris Gavino August 2 - 30, 2025 DSC01850.JPG 1/5 View Catalogue Video Press Release In Reset, Kris Gavino charts a liminal space where time loses its tyranny—where the past no longer haunts, and the future no longer threatens. What remains is the present: fragile, vivid, suspended like a breath held between sleep and waking. Gavino’s latest suite of paintings contemplates time not as a sequence but as a felt experience, subjective and shifting, folded in on itself by memory, imagination, and desire. Here, time is not kept by calendars or clocks, but by the human body—its weariness, its need for stillness, its quiet rituals of renewal. In “Rejuvenation,” a slumbering figure lies between worlds, cradled by a landscape that seems less inhabited than dreamed. The borders between body and ground blur, as if sleep itself were a threshold where the interior self dissolves into the elements. The atmosphere is one of silence, solitude, and that elusive sense of repose that arrives only when we surrender the need to measure or control. Gavino punctuates these soft, introspective settings with the image of a clock—an object made for personal timekeeping, capable of being rewound, reset. Set against imagined terrains, the watch becomes a poignant marker of human presence: minuscule in the face of geologic time, yet insistently ticking. How absurd, the works seem to ask, to frame the ancient earth with our fleeting concerns. And yet, how deeply human to try. In “Silence Between Thoughts,” a quiet self-portrait begins to fade into the landscape, as though the figure were not placed upon nature but made of it. There is no drama in the dissolution, only a steady, graceful yielding—a reminder that all things, including the self, are subject to erosion. The title evokes the ephemeral space between mental noise, where clarity sometimes blooms: not in assertion, but in the pause. Gavino writes, “Perspective is subjective. Having vision without sight may lead us to rely on the other senses, at times can be overwhelming. It is foolish to run the risk of going mad for sanity’s sake. Rest becomes more costly the more we need it... Ultimately, there will come an event where life will hit the reset button.” That “reset” may arrive suddenly or slowly, as a rupture or as grace. Either way, Reset invites us to meet it—not with resistance, but with awareness. To dwell, if only briefly, in a space outside of time. To listen for the silence. To rest. And perhaps, in doing so, to begin again. - Carlomar Arcangel Daoana

OBSKVRA | March 9 -30, 2024 OBSKVRA Pinggot Zulueta March 9 -30, 2024 1/6 View Catalogue Video Press Release OBSKVRA “In the dark times, will there also be singing? Yes, there will also be singing. About the dark times.” -Bertolt Brecht In a world cloaked in darkness, the artist Pinggot Zulueta wields his ink pen as both a lamentation and invocation. In his solo exhibition of new works, Obskvra, the artist presents ten artworks that resonate with a powerful blend of artistic vision, social critique, and exhortation. Obskvra is the fifth in a series of artworks by Pinggot Zulueta, which focuses on the existentiality of the human condition, his philosophical contemplations, and our infinite potential for survival. In 2016, his exhibition ‘Incepto’ had provided entry into the sublime thoughts of the artist’s soul. A year later, in ‘Ka.thar.sis’, his thoughtful reflection on alienation and solitude within unfamiliar environments was the central theme. In 2020, ‘Melankolia’ delved on understanding the inner self to achieve a sense of connection and harmony with one’s past. In 2022, ‘Infinitum’ accentuated an intense awareness of mortality, while urging viewers to make deliberate choices on what is truly important. The artist has excelled in various forms of art and within his works there is a wide range of genres and styles. His art dignifies his experience and universalizes it through a medium that dives deeply under the surface. The artist combines surrealistic elements and visually stunning images where black predominates over all colors. His use of symbols combined with intricate details and textures has produced artworks that are both haunting and beautiful. The choice of a more dispassionate and sober mode of expression, using ink pen and paper, is not unrelated to his inner struggle in the service of which his artworks are made. “My artistic process is characterized by the balance between a visual expression of what I see as well as personal influences. As an approach, repetitive layering using ink pen on paper continues until I feel a sense of harmony exists between the physical components and the evocative aspects of my artworks. I generate ideas through the artistic process itself. The unpredictable nature of layering – each step is a reaction to the one before - is a constant building up of an image and tearing it down. The more layers are added, the more thought provoking the artwork becomes. This artistic process is also a metaphor for how I have been shaped by what I have experienced. “ The artist’s works tend to be dark and almost monochrome save for the use of dramatic highlights – and present their subjects as fundamentally ungraspable and, inevitably, remain out of reach. His art is not about creating beautiful or enjoyable objects, nor is it about producing a pleasurable experience to delight the viewers. His artworks are designed to do quite the opposite – to cause us discomfort, to make us uneasy, or to make us feel the anguish and burden of existence. In Obskvra, the tension between the artist’s imagination and the overriding obligation to present the truth characterizes his works. His artworks convey darkness, mystery, and chaos. These are an extension of the artist’s subconscious which reveals what we already intimately know. He uses surreal symbols to depict the ideas and institutions, or temples of humanism, that our future has been invested in. The icons from which we drew our strengths now appear as esoteric characters, atrophied from within and turned into empty shells. His artworks have become an archival tool for resistance, a survival kit of imagination to retrieve and reclaim what has been lost. The exhibition is packed with artistic explorations – the central showcase, a four-panel piece, displays the artist’s skillful use of ink to produce a detailed and intricate image that conveys a sense of unease and psychological tension. ‘Hereditas (Legacy)’ presents the ‘weight of the world’ which is symbolized by a colossal stone eclipsing the innocent visage of Infanta Margarita, echoing Velasquez's timeless portrayal. The black backdrop signifies the present, enveloped in the shadow of our choices. Amidst the decay of Earth, the artwork challenges viewers to confront the legacy we bequeath to future generations – a poignant reflection on the responsibility to unveil a sustainable and hopeful future for our grandchildren and the next generation. The artist brings to our attention images that invoke a sense of urgency, if not in content, then invariably, in context. Faced with the fragmented and haunting elements of our past and present, how then do we construct a future? ‘Earthkeeper’ depicts a veiled woman standing amidst a mystical landscape. Her long dress symbolizes rootedness and the heart at her core radiates universal love, while the blackish cloud formation behind signifies the complexities of her earthly stewardship. This artwork is a visual ode to a transcendent guardianship of our shared home. This artwork reminds us that the ecological disaster worsens daily and yet the world remains distracted by politics that trade on setting up division, hatred, and fear. ‘Allegory of Rapture’ captures a poignant moment where an angel statue, symbolizing divine presence, rests against a dark foreground. The looming cumulus clouds suggest an impending event, or an imminent divine presence. This juxtaposition of celestial and sombre elements symbolizes the delicate juncture between the ephemeral and eternal. This artwork delves into the transient nature of humanity and contemplates questions surrounding our finite existence. In it, the dark landscape looms, as so often, a visual image truly speaks louder than words. Art invokes something in the human spirit that bolsters the soul in the toughest times and gives some sense of peace and purpose. The artist incorporates this idea into his work. He challenges viewers to consider other possibilities and to make alternatives happen. He invokes viewers to see the world differently and to adapt to wider perspectives beyond their own fears and anxieties. Bertolt Brecht put it powerfully: Art is not a mirror held up to society, but a hammer with which to shape it. In the darkest of times, art is not an indulgence. It is a mark of our deepest humanity and is essential. It is a way of undermining constrained perspectives, restoring hope, forging a sense of resilience, and asserting our humanity. The darkness of the world may not be our fault, but to light up the world is our existential duty. To cure the ills of society is too much to ask for any art or artist. But when a body of work – because it comes from a place of truth and universality – can reflect the horrors of the moment we live in, then it is incumbent upon us to give it serious attention. We cannot afford to overlook an ‘oeuvre’ as timely as this. V E Zulueta Pinggot Zulueta PINGGOT ZULUETA is a visual artist, editorial cartoonist and photographer. Since 1983, he has been joining art exhibitions here and abroad. He has presented 10 solo shows, including Tilamsik (1985), Asinta (2002), Aotearoa Series in New York (2005), Makatulog Ka Pa Kaya - with Poetry by Nationall Artist Virgilio Almario aka Rio Alma (2013) and Infinitum (2022). His artwork had been featured in the 2014 Langkawi Art Biennale in Malaysia. In 2015 and 2018, he produced a couple of coffee table books, about Filipino Contemporary artists entitled, Filipino Artists in Their Studios I and II. He graduated from the University of Santo Tomas with a degree in Fine Arts, Major in Painting.

Promete | November 8 - 29, 2025 Promete Iggy Rodriguez November 8 - 29, 2025 DSC08554.webp 1/4 View Catalogue Video Press Release Wretchedness precedes a promise. In burning silences where hope festers, heads are bowed and palms clenched up to oblivious skies. Promete expounds on perplexities of desperate longing, of frenzied clutching in lieu of tangible progress. Promete -- to promise – harks back to Rodriguez’s Chavacano roots, to growing up in Zamboanga City where both societal status and religion cut a gaping divide that only distance and introspection divulge. The exhibit is, in a sense, the artist’s self-scrutiny; methodical pen and brush strokes are a form of desperate worship as much as they are of systematic condemnation. The Politics of Longing Rodriguez’s meticulous pen and ink details painstakingly capture the cacotopia of faith in “Garden of Unearthly Desires,” a candidly Boschian rendition of the grotesque spectacle of devotion where the manufactured idea of paradise is matched in idiocy by resulting exhibitions of reverence. Veneration is a performance as much as infallibility is a farce. In this obscene landscape, the unmovable taunt with contrived indifference. The destitute kneel in the belief that suffering is a prerequisite to dangled salvation, their fervent faith sustaining the powerful. Uncertainty blooms in a morphology of writhing limbs in “Dance of the Anguished,” where the symphony of misery is dehumanized bythe logic of geometry: it is as painful as it is expected. But faith largely relies on myths of deliverance and therefore balks under the gravity of unfulfilled promises in “Weight of the Wind,” for the responsibility of belief falls on those who contort, just as the idea of rain rests on the ardent hope of those who dance. Known for his brand of social realism that centers on the absurdity of human existence eternally trapped in nuances of politics and power, Rodriguez traverses murky silences in dynamics of society– the promisor blunders as the hopeful squirm in the agony of waiting. In works from the ‘Asa’ series, postures of yearning are inevitably trapped in the inanity of desire. This series of semi-sculptural pen and ink drawings from the artist’s collection probes the sanctity of devotion in the grip of futility. The Paradox of Self As the canvases smolder with red-orange undertones, questions arise and disturb: are the quiet seething rather than cowering? Are the mighty paralyzed rather than supine? Identity dissolves into hollow patterns in “Anonymous II” as bodies become fragmented puzzles in search of coherence. But it is precisely in these fissures of despair that the will to assemble persists, albeit muted by doubt. Hesitance is confused for anticipation. In contemplating nightmarish dystopias, Rodriguez scrutinizes structures of dominance held captive by their own authority. Unyielding horsemen in “Monumental Entropy” epitomize architectures of empires that attempt to merge but melt with their own weight – grandeur blooms with decay as corporations dissolve but refuse to crumble. Turmoil, thus, is not exclusive to the powerless. Adam, a parable of possession, is entangled in an unsettling mix of manic triumph and delusion in “Inheritance of the First Man,” perforce wearing his arrogant, idiotic grin, eternally trapped in his own hubris. Presupposed wisdom is an insult as the powerful eternally fumble. Eminence offers no reprieve. In the unforgiving dichotomy of dominion and desolation, empires have none to plead to but their own fragility. “Petition of the Unmoved” embodies society ensnared by its own systems. It is a testament to the realization of vulnerabilities, and a contemplation of the ironies of its own existence: jagged monoliths pierce through and take control as thought is wryly debased in a contemptible figure bloated by its own consumption. The infallible kneels and prays for its own salvation. Promete invites the viewer to relish in both reverence and disillusionment, and to ponder contradictions in the rhetoric of absurdity. Geometric rigidity intersperses with quivering bodies as the indestructible feigns complacence. In Rodriguez’s persistent interrogations of societal systems and politics of the self, the sacrosanct is as steadfast as it is weary. Piya Constantino

Your Mouth Has A Mind Of Its Own | June 8 - 29, 2024 Your Mouth Has A Mind Of Its Own Lindslee June 8 - 29, 2024 1/11 View Catalogue Video Press Release "Your Mouth has a Mind of Its Own" is an exhibition that explores the intricate layers of Filipino mentality, ideology, belief, culture, and tradition. Through this body of work, I aim to reveal the pervasive influence of superstitious beliefs and religion on the collective psyche. My intention is to illustrate how these elements often precede rational thought, leading to instinctual, sometimes detrimental, responses. At the heart of this exhibition is a series of sculptures and mixed media pieces that delve into typical Filipino beliefs. The first piece, "Tulak ng Dibdib, Kabig ng Bibig," features a human figure—a gaunt alcoholic man adorned with religious tattoos. Perched on his head is a taxidermy bird, symbolizing misguided strength and ego. Created with polyresin, textile, and oil paint, this work embodies the notion that superstitions can dominate and control one’s mindset and beliefs. Another work in a 3D representation of a janitor fish titled "Mahuhuli Ka Sa Bibig." Molded and cast in resin, the fish swims in a substance resembling mud, juxtaposing the traditional koi fish paintings believed to bring luck and prosperity against the reality of polluted Philippine lakes where only janitor fish thrive. This artwork highlights the disparity between expectations and reality. Additionally, the exhibition features a religious piece titled "Nasa Dyos Ang Gawa," portraying an ostensibly invisible figure of Jesus on the cross, covered in bird droppings with 2 taxidermy sparrows perched on top. The figure, cast in water-soluble materials and later dissolved to appear invisible, is symbolized by the resin bird droppings that define its presence. This piece critiques the belief that faith alone can save believers from a dystopian reality. Another piece, "Art for the Sick," presents an upscale version of the SkyFlakes biscuit, a food associated with recovery from ailments like alcohol hangover, food poisoning or diabetes. This work comments on the consumption of art as a means of feeling better about oneself, reflecting on art’s role in personal and societal healing. The remaining works in the exhibition are three-dimensional acrylic paintings on canvas, appearing as hyper-realistic sculptures. These pieces depict food items such as a cake, "Maligayang Araw," an over-prepared spaghetti in a tub, "Ubos Ubos Biyaya," and an empty plate eaten off by a starving man, "Anong Ulam?" They employ unconventional painting techniques to achieve a sculptural effect, representing the Filipino culture of celebration—emphasizing visual abundance despite limited resources, as people prepare excessive food to please their guests. Through "Your Mouth has a Mind of Its Own," I invite viewers to reflect on the impact of deeply ingrained beliefs and to question the instinctual responses shaped by superstition and religion. This exhibition calls for confronting the disparity between appearance and reality, urging a deeper understanding of the cultural forces at play. -Lindslee

An Abstract Voyage Edwin Martinez August 5, 2023 Add a Title Describe your image Add a Title Describe your image Add a Title Describe your image Add a Title Describe your image 1/12 Of Uncertain Passages An Abstract Voyage reflects on the complexities of life's journey and the significance of introspection. Contemplating past decisions and missed opportunities, Edwin Martinez acknowledges the fickleness and unreliability of the human mind. The artist emphasizes the importance of rest as an essential component of learning from failures. We are often too quick to bounce back without taking the time to reflect on our experiences, yet this is imperative if we are to survive. The artist seemingly aims to capture the cycle of failure, respite, and redemption that is an inherent part of the human experience. Through the depiction of a cycle of continuously falling down and getting back up, Martinez’ works illustrate that failure is not always negative; it is an integral aspect of life. When faced with failure, one must compose oneself and prepare for what lies ahead. Falling into Earth, an astronaut, a lonely soul floating about in the cosmos, finds the comforts of home within reach: a plant, a pillow, a chair, even a steadfast companion serves as accessories and accompaniments in a convoluted journey. The pieces in the exhibition signify that following a period of rest and reflection, the future may hold uncertainty, excitement, and perhaps even fear. However, with adequate preparation and unwavering courage, progress is likely to follow. The astronaut serves as a representation of ourselves, the artist, and the viewers, symbolizing the need to confront life's challenges fearlessly and survive falling and failing with resilience. It is being lost as we find the meaning behind our existence in the world, the universe, rather, and never getting tired of finding our own way. An Abstract Voyage encourages viewers to embrace the uncertainties of life, understanding that falling is not to be feared. Perhaps a straight-edged, well-planned navigation through human years is less exciting than losing oneself in unexpected adventures. What truly matters is the ability to endure and prepare for whatever life presents, maintaining a steadfast determination to face its burdens and challenges head-on. Martinez also draws on Blaise Pascal’s quote, “Men seek rest in a struggle against difficulties; and when they have conquered these, rest becomes insufferable,” which explores the paradoxical nature of human desires and the quest for contentment. The famed mathematician and philosopher observes that individuals, when faced with difficulties, exert effort to overcome them, hoping that achieving this conquest will bring them a sense of tranquility and ease. However, Pascal also notes that once these individuals successfully surmount their difficulties and attain the desired rest, they surprisingly find it insufferable or unbearable. This suggests that the very state of rest they yearned for and worked hard to obtain becomes dissatisfying for them. Martinez, through his works, reminds us that human nature tends to thrive on challenges and the process of conquering obstacles. Struggles, however we wish to avoid them, undeniably give us a sense of purpose and direction. They give us reasons to move forward and continue fighting the good fight. Without struggle, a feeling of emptiness or a lack of purpose ensues, no longer having something to strive for or a goal to pursue. Often, it tethers us to reality and to being human, siting our bodies within the wider expanse of space. Comfort is good, yet it is discomfort that coaxes us to propel ourselves forward. Kaye O’Yek 1/1

Sa Dalampasigan ng Daluyong at Dalangin | September 21 - October 5, 2024 Sa Dalampasigan ng Daluyong at Dalangin Jeho Bitancor September 21 - October 5, 2024 1/8 View Catalogue Video Press Release In his poignant homecoming exhibition Sa Dalampasigan ng Daluyong at Dalangin, Jeho Bitancor presents a lyrical collection of works that pays tribute to the resilient fisherfolk of the Philippines. These individuals, whose labor is both dignified and vital, are set against the presence of a foreign power threatening their livelihoods as well as the country’s sovereignty. This exhibition, while capturing the physical toil of these fisherfolk, also bring to fore the broader struggles they face in asserting their right to survive. Bitancor’s works unfold on canvases that highlight the beauty and majesty of the sea. Breathtaking skies and ever-changing waters serve as both a source of sustenance and a looming threat to the people who depend on it. Through a visual language rooted in Social Realism, Bitancor depicts fisherfolk engaged in their daily tasks—hauling their catch, sorting the fishes, or braving the open seas both in calm and tumultuous conditions. Long-limbed, physically expressive, their faces resolute, the figures exude a quiet heroism. The artist’s deep connection to his subject matter is evident in the evocative details of each piece. Having grown up in a coastal town in Baler, Aurora Province, Bitancor’s personal experiences with the sea are deeply imprinted in his art. Recalling the “Subasko” storms of his childhood and a perilous experience when a small banca he was riding in capsized, Bitancor intimately understands the risks that fishermen face every day. These memories, which form part of who he is, permeate the works. This exhibition is not simply an ode to the sea or those who navigate its waters. It also exposes the anxieties and the indeterminacies brought about by geopolitical issues. The waters that have long sustained the fisherfolk—affirmed by a resolution by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea as rightfully ours—are now contested by a foreign power with expansionist ambitions. Bitancor’s paintings, while steeped in maritime traditions, are timely and urgent, reflecting the current reality of the Philippines with its regard to its territorial identity. Jeho Bitancor’s paintings serve as love letters to his country, that despite having lived and worked in the United States, his tender affinities lie with the archipelago, particularly with the people “with the sunburst limbs in tattered clothes, with the squinted eyes and calloused hands, with the forward thrust of weary bodies in heroic stance.” Through these works, the artist invites us to establish our solidarity with our fisherfolk, extol our waters and their bounties, and remain committed in asserting our sovereignty. -Carlomar Arcangel Daoana

Love Is The Only Way Billy Bagtas September 2 - 30, 2023 Add a Title Describe your image Add a Title Describe your image Add a Title Describe your image Add a Title Describe your image 1/12 Love Persevering and Flourishing Love Is The Only Way, Billy Bagtas's remarkable fifth solo exhibition, is a veritable tribute to flexibility, transformation, and the healing power of the most compelling feeling on earth and beyond. Exploring a journey of overcoming darkness through artistic expression, Bagtas takes us on a personal yet penetrating voyage through six engrossing paintings and an intriguing installation. These works embody the emotional landscape of souls coping with loss and the artist's lived experience as his family navigated the profound pain of losing his mother in 2021. In Father's Portrait, Bagtas paints a larger-than-life feminized likeness as recognition of his father’s caring and nurturing side, replete with a flower and earrings adorning his bald head and a pink smile complementing his mustache. The artist lightheartedly captures his essence with the overlapping linear strokes he is known for. Due to his mother’s physical absence, his father now serves as not only the foundation of the family home but also embodies both maternal and paternal qualities. With inspiration coming from a past lifestyle that’s way different from the way it is now, Bagtas captures his father's strength in the piece being both the main loadbearing post and illumination for the home, as evinced by a gleam that backlights the subject’s head ever so slightly. Together signifies a renewed bond between the artist and his father after loss and grief. Depicting two figures in a side embrace whose glowing hearts beat under a rosy sky, it symbolizes the dawn of a new chapter in their relationship, emphasizing the importance of shared comfort, understanding, and companionship during difficult times. Two Shadows Under the Moonlight has an enigmatic forest as a setting where what appears to be the same figures stand, illuminated by the purple-tinged moon in the night sky. This painting speaks of unresolved conflicts set aside, and the persistence of love despite shadows of the past. There is darkness, yes, but it conveys calm instead of peril. The random interconnectivity of life's experiences is signified by leaves, stalks, and branches spreading across the canvas, their lushness representing growth and acceptance yet never stifling the figures. Monstera leaves elegantly represent family members, suggesting proliferation, flourishing, and a newfound abundance of positive energy. The portrayal of these leaves, soft and graceful, reflects living in an environment that encourages thriving, accentuating the artist's paradigm shifts as well as the growth of the closest of relations. White Heart encapsulates changes in attitudes and habits. With his father becoming a "plantito" (a plant enthusiast), his nurturing personality is embodied in the delicate depiction of himself in the midst of plants. Fatherly care serves to keep the core of his soul glowing, helping every being– whether walking or rooted in place– he comes across. Bagtas’ central piece, It's Only Through Death That You Learn to Cherish Life, however, is not only the largest artwork in the exhibition but also the most poignant and rife with symbolism. In the piece, a figure is in contemplation while luxuriating in a bathtub, accompanied by steadfast companion dogs Neo, Maja, and Jake. The past's influence, represented by an enfleshed reflection at the end of the tub, has transformed into a guiding force. The presence of yellow dots, glimmering orbs and black spots as prayers muttered in faith and love, with sunflower petals, Bagtas’ mother’s favorite flower, and rose petals sprinkling the passion-red bath water, speaks to the journey of acceptance and love as physical and spiritual dimensions converge. Though the figure’s skin appears texturized, they are not thorns or spikes of agony; shedding, after all, is part of the value of letting go, the soul undergoing renewal amidst the warm embrace of beloved companions. Finally, the installation Scars of the Past provides a satisfying punctuation to the exhibition, as it portrays a verdant face encased in foliage. This composite image of combined objects signifies growth, overcoming past hardships, and embracing abundance. The piece represents metamorphosis, traversing pain, and emerging in exuberant bloom. The color palette in Bagtas’ recent artworks are noticeably brighter than in his past collections, as he adroitly transitions to bridging the earthly and heavenly realms, reflecting the harmonious connection between them. Perhaps a well-kept secret discipline started in the artist's youth as a performer and dancer with the renowned Ramon Obusan Folkloric Group has finally come to surface. Dance is an integral part of his artistic identity, and now it informs his practice in the visual arts. As his group celebrated its 50th anniversary with the show "Dancing in a New World'' at the Metropolitan Theatre last August 18 and 19, Bagtas's commitment to both his craft and his artistry was tested: he had to paint in preparation for his exhibition between rehearsals, and in turn, painting offered him a comforting respite from his physically taxing training sessions. Practice and discipline come across as integral in both fields, and Bagtas’ mastery of his body in movement, whether in creating small and grand gestures on canvas, or performing in unison on stage with his fellow dancers, was set to the forefront. There is love in each action and impression, and it is evident in the exquisite balance of emotion and technique in this exceptional exhibition. Indeed, this ineffable feeling is the only way to grasp truths and emerge more indomitable than ever before. Kaye O’Yek Billy Bagtas Diving into the intricate realm of visual artistry at a young age, Billy Bagtas, a 28-year-old luminary, has illuminated the artistic sphere with his remarkable talent and fervor. With nearly six years of dedicated practice as a Visual Artist, Billy's journey is a testament to the transformative power of passion and perseverance. Billy's odyssey began in 2013 when he embarked on his artistic expedition at Earist Manila, where he delved into the world of Fine Arts. Painting swiftly became his solace and the canvas his sanctuary, as he poured his thoughts, emotions, and creativity onto the blank expanse. In this journey, painting competitions emerged as stepping stones that bolstered his growth. These competitions not only honed his craft but also germinated the very concepts that continue to resonate in his artistry up to this day. 1/1

And They All Gather Around the Zenith | October 12 - November 02, 2024 And They All Gather Around the Zenith Jason Delgado October 12 - November 02, 2024 1/4 View Catalogue Video Press Release All Aboard the Slumber Train to Arced Dreamworlds Jason Delgado’s latest exhibition, And They All Gather Around the Zenith, offers an exploration of the personal and collective self through his paintings of pillows. The artist uses the imagery of this household object, something mundane yet highly personal, to symbolize reflection, vulnerability, and contemplation. The zenith is the highest point in the sky reached by the sun or stars. The artist gently prods our sights up this celestial arc as his work invites viewers to lie back and look up. Delgado seemingly reminds us that this act compels us to search inward, pondering on our hopes and fears as we gaze at the stars (or, often, our bare ceilings) for inspiration. At least until we feel the welcome pull of exhaustion finally lulling us to sleep. Painting pillows since 2017, Delgado views them as silent confidantes, vessels for innermost thoughts and dreams. Each painting has its character, a personal witness to private moments. But in And They All Gather Around the Zenith, these intimate objects are infused with contrasting elements: some have symbols of war and circus acts, while others are juxtaposed with hopeful motifs like flowers and birds. Several of them sprout gardens on printed fabric, the body impression of a head kept intact. Two pillows are bound with each other with pillowcases pulled and sewn together with knotted red thread. Others seem undisturbed and revered, still waiting to receive weary heads or other parts of fatigued bodies. With intricate oil on canvas pieces contrasting with his previous minimalist works, the artist embraces horror vacui or fear of empty spaces, filling the canvas with detail and contrasts. Channeling turmoil and the complexity of life, his pillows embody tensions between serenity and discord. One of the notable works in the exhibition, White Noise, encapsulates this concept: while chaos may seem overwhelming, there is beauty and calm within it, much like white noise itself, which soothes the mind amid the distractions of life, calming restless souls or even a fussy baby. As a new father, Delgado draws inspiration from his role as a hands-on dad, changing his perspective, and adding layers of caution and accountability for other lives. His nightly painting routine now often affords him a break at 3 or 4 AM and he fully relishes it while gazing at the sky from his rooftop, which mirrors the zenith’s upward arc during these moments of solitude. Thus his creative practice has become an act of cherishing fleeting moments, much like the transient peace one finds in enjoying rest. And They All Gather Around the Zenith signals a new perspective for Delgado. Perhaps we should not only admire the beauty of his pieces but reconcile with the deeper sentiments they evoke within. After all, they lead to the quiet moments when hopes, dreams, and fears gather, like an enveloping embrace that cradles, nurtures, and rejuvenates. Kaye O’Yek

Unplanned Spaces | Unplanned Spaces Hanna Sayam, Jack De Castro, James Barbecho, Kendall Colindon, Kim Gaceja. Marvin Quizon. PJ Andayran, RC Caringal, Tony Mercado 1/7 View Catalogue Video Press Release Into the Unplanned Painting is a slow form. It resists the pace of everything around it — the accelerated image culture, the speed of information, the feeling that the world is constantly mid-revision. To choose it, especially now, is not nostalgia. It is a particular kind of resolve. But painting is also, by nature, a practice of the unplanned. You build the discipline, the observation, the accumulating mastery — and then you stay open to what the process discovers on its own. This tension between commitment and receptivity, between what the painter intends and what the canvas insists on becoming, is where painting lives. Unplanned spaces are not failures of control. They are where the real work happens. The ten painters here are mostly young, all of them working through a moment that has not been easy to work through. What holds them together is less a shared subject than a shared orientation: toward the personal as genuine inquiry, toward the body, memory, and ordinary feeling as legitimate artistic material. Hanna Sayam’s human-animal hybrids indict the systems that reduce bodies to utility. In Hallow / Hollow (2026), a haloed, wounded figure floats amid objects that are both bounty and burden — the halo less a benediction than an accusation. A Bloom That Bites (2026) collapses the nurturing and the predatory into one creature. Under capitalism, Sayam suggests, these were never opposites. Kendall Colindon’s Mga Daluyan ng Uhaw (2025) renders progress as loss — vessels of sustenance accumulated into a mass that is at once monumental and mournful, the blue not of abundance but of thirst, of what development quietly displaces and paves over. Jack de Castro’s The Bloom After Pain (2025) is painting as physical reckoning. His wilting flowers are memento mori in the oldest sense: beauty in the act of failing, the gesture itself wringing both release and elegy from the same mark. PJ Andayran’s Dailies (2024) wears its critique lightly, which makes it sharper. Two costumed animal figures in an ambiguous field — pasture or mall atrium — use satire not to ridicule from a distance but to implicate, to make the familiar strange enough to finally see. R.C. Caringal’s One’s Devotion (2024) is as much self-portrait of process as it is subject. To paint hands with this much material insistence — pigment accumulating into something between image and sculpture — is to make the act of painting itself visible. For Caringal, to paint is to act, to shape, to claim agency with one’s own hands. James Barbecho’s Echoes of Lullaby (2025) places human fragility inside overwhelming mechanical complexity. The title’s tenderness — a lullaby — sits against the image’s cold geometry like a whisper inside a machine, asking what survives of human warmth when the systems we build grow too intricate to feel. Marvin Quizon’s Weight of Wisdom (2026) works in sepia — the palette of retrieved memory — placing a female figure at its center as allegory rather than spectacle. Wounds here are not merely scars but openings, painful and generative at once, the body as a site where psychological history is both carried and transformed. Kim Gaceja’s The Quiet We Inherit (2025) understands that the mundane is not the opposite of the profound but often its most reliable address. His domestic interiors — a record player, earthen vessels, particular light — are externalizations of a mental sphere where quiet connections and small epiphanies accumulate into meaning. Tony Mercado’s Suddenly, My Flowers Withered (2026) closes the show at a threshold with no clean resolution: pink blooms against rough gray, caught at the precise moment of their failing — beauty on its own contingent, urgent terms. Painting, at its most necessary, is how some people cope with a world that won’t hold still — how they navigate it, question it, refuse to be merely subject to it. These ten painters are doing exactly that: building a practice as open to surprise as it is committed to rigor. The unplanned spaces in their work are not absences. They are where the conversation with the world is most alive. -AG