The Aesthetic Experience as the Statement: Exhibitions in February 2023

There is more to a work of art than what is represented. And there is more to art that meets the eye.

Written by Amanda Juico Dela Cruz
March 3, 2023

There is more to a work of art than what is represented. How was the work of art done? What does the process tell the viewer? How does the viewer see a work? What does the gaze tell about the viewer? How does the work make the viewer feel? What does it tell about the intention of the artist? Such questions tell us that there is more to art that meets the eye.

Benjo Elayda, “Este Teka”, Eskinita Art Farm.

A toned female wearing nothing but a red and black boudoir lace seems to be showing off her body as she poses like 80s Grace Jones. Instead of a pompous hairstyle, she matches her glamour with her brain—the thing that she is actually showing off. The cognitive brilliance of women is the common denominator among the female figures in the show as the artist critics the portrayal of women as mere “aesthetic,”  used here in the lexicon of the contemporary youth. The artist revives both the women and the term within the discourse of John Berger’s “Ways of Seeing.”

Eugenia Alcaide, “Layers”, Galerie Stephanie.

The artist juxtaposes the process of her art making with the process of unearthing one’s unconsciousness as she forms stitches in her thread work untangling the complexities of identities. Her works are not mere portraits, but soulful portrayal illuminated by the shadows casted by patterns, colors, and textures done on layers of stretched silk canvas attached to a light box. The multiplicity of layers mimics the multiplicity of identities, hence the use of the noun in its plural form. What seems to be flat figure is actually composed of many dimensions exactly like how a person is—multi-dimensional self-conscious beings.

Potti Lesaguis, David Ryan Viray, Eze Quirante, Gene Paul Martin, and Uri Deger, “Bukang Liwayway”, Blanc Gallery.

The artists in the group show meditate on the cosmic experience of basking in the sunlight through their art making. Art offers them a similar celebratory experience as they take their own renditions on the break of dawn as a metaphor. Lesaguis takes the literal form of opening through the use of flowers, also the oldest symbolism for maternal energy. Viray takes the route of finding spiritual companionship in what is familiar. Martin and Quirante attempt to articulate those that are beyond what the limited human consciousness can grapple. Deger, on the other hand, refracts the scarier world of reality.

Francis Alingcayon, Angelie Banaag, Manny Cabrera, Salvador Cabrera Jr., Norman Casilin, RM Cerezo, Alfonso Dato, Alfred Dato, Yoner Dato, Erni “ErGo” Gomez, Art Lozano, Summer Lozano, Franco Matucad, Elmo Modelo, Iwag Palattao, Mia Panimdim, Lourice Raphael, Jose Santiago, Dexter Simsim, Joey Simsim, Hazel Sobremonte, and Kyle Vizcara, “Querencia”, ArtistSpace.

Budding and seasoned artists from Luzon come together for a group show that acts as anthology of the artists’ querencia. The reality of the Spanish word is more poetic, more metaphysical, and way more sentimental than an actual and a metaphorical home. Some of the artist opt to explore a magical world of fictitious characters, while others seek refuge in memory and nostalgia. Some of them go back to a mother’s cradle and comfort, while others pay homage to their culture and everyday sights. Some confronted the social realities they struggle with everyday, while others find their querencia in meditation.

Isabel Echevarria, “Beyond Borders in Parallel Time”, Qube Gallery.

Here and there. Past and future. Self and others. Action and stillness. The artist defies the spacio-temporality of places in her paintings as she juxtaposes two worlds in her canvas. People from the present are seen lurking in scenes captured from centuries ago. Developments done around the old buildings are seen standing side by side with how history books describe what life was like. Contemporary automobiles are driven alongside horse-driven carriages and old trams in cobblestone streets. The grays of the past co-exist with the vibrance of the present. Time is blurred and questioned. Cultures are shared and propagated.

Philip Aldefolio, “Animal Crackers”, Underground.

Identical sculptures of dogs marching in a circle is reminiscent of when a dog tries to catch its tail. Illustrations of a chicken that unknowingly gets itself in dangerous situations. A silkscreen ink on a canvas reads “Kink Kong: Eighth Wonder of the World.” An orange lobster—an indication that it has been cooked—is painted on a canvas with the text “LUCKY!!!” The artist wittingly uses animals almost as if caricatures of their own ill fate. The story depicted in each work first seems to be a harmless musing on animals until one realizes the dark humor, the plot twist.