WHERE do you retreat when overcome by fear and anxiety? In the presence of loved ones? The corners of your thoughts? In the darkness of denial or the light of perspective?
As a measure of self-preservation, most of us have had to establish a semblance of stability at a time which presented little of it. A coping mechanism. Something we can control.
In the newest set of exhibitions at Art Elaan, visual artists reflect on their safe spaces. One presents her ongoing series about sisterhood. Another invites us to focus on the bright side, while another still dwells on the shared smiles of yesteryears. Finally, a group of artists open up about their respective strongholds.
The presentations opened on November 13 and run until December 5.
‘Dialogo’ by Celeste Lecaroz
Painter Celeste Lecaroz burst into the local arts scene a few years ago with large acrylic portraits in spontaneous realism, popularized by Austrian painter Voka. Lecaroz’s take featured mostly Filipino cultural icons bathed in the whimsical colors and swept in the gestural strokes of the style.
In Dialogo, the artist’s seventh solo exhibition, Lecaroz showcases new works of a special series she began in 2019 about sisterhood, using only pastel, which in itself consociates her with an exclusive club.
“The pastel medium is recognized to have historical ties to female artists,” according to Italian curator Furio Rinaldi, who presents the idea in an ongoing exhibition at The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco. “This is revealed through powerful examples by Rosalba Carriera, who popularized the art of pastel painting in 18th century Venice; Elisabeth Louise Vigée-LeBrun and Marie Gabrielle Capet, who championed the genre in France in the late 1700s; and Mary Cassatt, Eva Gonzalès and Berthe Morisot, the celebrated heroines of Impressionism.”
Conveyed in Dialago is Lecaroz’s growth as a full-time artist. Traded in place of the artist’s signature mural-bright palette are subdued colors that evoke nostalgia, fitting for her subjects of two traditional local women clad in intricate Filipinianas.
Each piece shows the same pair of women engaged in a conversation, either verbally or through meaningful exchanges of looks and knowing smiles. In Kilatis, they even share criticisms as they scrutinize something out of frame, with one’s fingers emphasizing finer points and the other’s wrist bent in agreement. Their eyes are fixated in one direction and a singular conclusion.
‘The Bright Side of “It”’ by Art Lozano, and ‘Gunita’ by Christian Regis
Two of Art Elaan’s four ongoing shows are back-to-back solo exhibitions featuring Art Lozano and Christian Regis.
Lozano, known for tapping archetypal images from retro-pop culture, invites viewers to take a ride past today’s negativities and onto a field of chosen bliss in The Bright Side of “It.”
Perhaps the artist has developed pandemic fatigue to a point that he refuses to refer to the ongoing global health crisis as is, and calls on us to focus on the silver lining instead. In the show, the journey is the destination as Lozano’s signature retro Volkswagens cruise past fanciful trees with candy-colored leaves.
Meanwhile, Christian Regis’s vehicle of choice in his exhibition, titled Gunita, is Manila jeepneys that ply memory lane.
In Viajeng Pa Avenida (Tramvia at Jeepney), for instance, the cacophony of jeepneys honking, people greeting and Manila breathing rings through the canvas, reminding viewers of scenes of the past. Regis
depicts his latest works as stamps, rendered in multi-colored impasto, alluding to how Filipinos keep their identity wherever they go.
‘Fortress’ featuring Reynold Dela Cruz, CJ Tañedo, Robert Besana, Jojo Ramirez
A group of artists ponder on where they turn to in the face of fright in Fortress.
The quartet of Reynold Dela Cruz, CJ Tañedo, Robert Besana and Jojo Ramirez bare their terrors and where they gather strength with a thought-provoking collection of surrealist works and portraits. By opening themselves up, the participating artists invite the viewers to reflect upon their own fortresses.
More information about the exhibitions can be found at www.artelaan.com.