I didn’t come up with an immediate answer, and the question had continued to boil and brew and spawn more questions as time went by.

What is contemporary Philippine Art? .
Are there trends in Philippine Contemporary Art?

If so, what motivates these trends? .

And so on and so forth. . . .
At a later point, I realized that whatever the “trends” are in Philippine art, the first issue to be tackled was the question of “What are Philippine Aesthetics?” This may be long treatise, however let us try to shorten it for the article.

What are Philippine aesthetics and what is Philippine art has been a debate among intellectuals for a long time, and in this situation I will throw my twenty-five centavos in the mix.

Looking back at the continuous march of award winner in the multitude of art competitions, one would see a wide variety of works, yet not clearly indication what are the trends in Philippine Contemporary Art. From the surreal to the sublime, the abstract to the absurd, the expressive to exotic, the minimalist to the macabre . . . one thing that’s for sure, we are definitely postmodern.

As in postmodern art, there is no definite trend, no single principle or ism that would define even a single artwork. There are obvious acts of appropriation, hybridism of style and techniques, and a multitude of different representations, abstractions and expressions.

INSET 1:

In Postmodernism, nothing is new, but what is new is what you make of the past!!!

In the Modernist agenda, there was an urgent need to see the world and art itself in a new light (as opposed to the earlier Classical, Realist and Romantic thought) through every conceivable manner. Through that came first the Impressionists, then Expressionists, and so on and so forth; until all these discoveries, isms and trends stopped at the 1980s. By then, it seemed that every form of expression had been discovered, every alternative exhausted, and there was nothing new to discover. So what was left was to appropriate, reuse and synthesizes what had been done in the past and re-present all of that in one’s own art. This is the postmodern way.

There is no trend but for people to do what they see best at that moment.

Looking at the present crop of new artists, we see the same eclectic mix award-winning, self-taught and just trying to get a niche artist, with so many styles and influences, yet with none truly copying or following the other.

Take Ronald Ventura’s work, which can be described as hyper-surrealist paintings, with super realist renderings of hybrid humans, taking after the Hyper Realist works of the 1970s NY scene and the realist surrealist nature of Salvador Dali, with a touch of macabre dark toned images of Jojo Legaspi.

Marcial Pontillas in turn exhibits a socio-expressionist art, with the expressive brushwork akin to Wilhelm De Kooning, yet showing the a bright socio-commentary far from Danny Dalena.

If that is the state of Philippine Art, what makes it any different from what is happening in the contemporary international art scene? In other words, what make art, Philippine Art?
 

For me, what defines our art, from the past to the present, are traditional values and principles that continue to motivate our artists to create their images; even if the images and manifestations differ as time goes on.
 

INSET 2

For this article, my definition of Philippine Arts is that of the art works and art forms that are produced by artists, who consider themselves as citizens (transient or permanent) of the Philippines and hold nationalistic affinity to the Philippines.

MATANAWIN: THE FILIPINO VISUAL NATURE

The Filipino is primarily visual in nature, specifically relative to representational works; this is so, because of we need to seek affinities in every aspect of life and declare who we are in the same manner. This is very much in principle why we are clannish, regional, and very nationalistic. In lieu of this, we try to reach out to everything we can connect ourselves to, such as the Pinoy communities in foreign countries.

Our nature to relate of ourselves visually can be seen in how we deck each nook and cranny of our homes with every sort of memorabilia, collectibles, knick-knacks, and such, in order to express whom we are. The same visual sensibility can also be seen in our traditional cultures, such as the tattoos of the Ifugao, who add a design to their body per accomplishment in life; or how the Maranao deck their royal homes in a myriad of color and patterns in painted wood carving, brassware, and cloth.

INSET 3

Norman Dreo’s socio-realist paintings have every inch crammed with images of his neighborhood, such as the junk, the local tambays and such. This reflects the very vibrant yet cramped world that he has grown up with, and he wishes to share with the world.

MAPAGPANLOOB: THE FILIPINO INTERNAL REFLECTION

This same visual nature is obviously manifest in our present art, where the artist expresses one’s person, concerns and ideas on to canvas, wood, metal, etc.
In these visual expressions, the Filipino is very internally reflective, whether it is an emotion, a concept, a deeper spiritual expression or an ethical perspective. This is evident in our spirituality, such as our strong devotion to the saints, or why many people still write to Joe the Mango and pour their hearts out to him.
Therefore, many of our artworks reflect the artist’s inner thoughts and feelings, from social commentaries to simple personal angst.

INSET 4

Elmer Borlongan’s surrealist images of deformed human beings in very somber poses and colors are expressing the artists own feelings of alienation and anxiety for his childhood. The images tend to have an archetypical character of the bald ‘warped’ man, which somehow places Mr. Borlongan as the every man, with everyday problems.

MASUSI: THE FILIPINO’S EYE FOR DETAIL

Branching from our visually representational nature, the Filipino also loves to expand his space to contain all these affinities. For example, one would typically deck his home with every form of memorabilia and whatnots all over the house, in a chaotic attempt to express one’s self. The same goes for the jeepneys that are embellished and adorned with a myriad of unrelated décor and images, thus the term of Jeepney Art, for Philippine decorative tastes.

This eye for detail could be linked to our ancestors mimicking the colors and details of nature in their art, such as the complex floral motifs of the Maranao okir design.

In art, this horror vacui is reflected in either a multitude of colors or a seemingly cacophonous set of highly detailed images, which display one theme.

INSET 5

Ferdie Montemayor’s expressive townscapes are images of crammed houses of the Antipolo landscape in a fishbowl perspective. Such details give rise to the chaotic scenes of instant urbanization of Mr. Montemayor’s home town.

MAKULAY: THE FILIPINO’S LOVE FOR COLOR

If such imagery could be related to the earlier Filipinos’ attempts to capture the complex yet colorful flora and fauna of our tropical forests, then in that same knack for detail, there is a just as exuberantly love for strong bold colors. Such evidence can be seen in our folk art, such as the traditional costumes of the T‘boli and Bagobo; or in the gaily decorated floats and costumes used in our festivals, such as the Maskara and the Ati-atihan.

Thus, Filipino artist is often a colorist, who often would express himself in a wide palette of colors, usually in bold bright tones.

INSET 6

Leonardo Aguinaldo’s painted rubber cuts are filled with much texture, patterns and images of Philippine Society, rendered in colorful cartoonish symbolisms that is reflects a festive Filipino spirit.

MAGPAGKAKAGAMIT: FILIPINO UTILITARIANISM

In our traditional arts, every expression has a practical purpose beyond the artist’s personal intent. This utilitarian nature makes the artwork more precious that a simple aesthetic object. Take for example the Kalinga bahag, not only is it a beautiful piece of weaving, its purpose is to protect the owner’s body parts from the elements; and it is to declare the social status of the bearer, whether he is a commoner, a warrior or a member of the aristocracy.

Aside from making art for a living, present artists often use art in a Freudian manner as if to purge themselves of their inner thoughts feelings on to a canvas, in attempt of self-therapy. In lieu to this thinking, others see art as the vehicle of the artist to preach his advocacy.

Sad to say, the other utilitarian nature of art is to beautify the collector’s wall.

INSET 7

Daniel Coquilla’s socio-expressive bird’s eye view paintings relate his humorous out takes of life. Such works tend to exorcise Mr. Coquilla’s anxieties about the darker side of human nature.

MAPAGKARAMDAMIN: FILIPINO ROMANTICISM

The Filipino is said to be very romantic, an idealist at best. This value is clearly visible of the box office hits on the wide screen. Even the recent trend in horror flicks, plays not only with our fascination with the morbid, but with the heroic ability to overcome the unknown.

Is this trait, to idealize, borne of centuries of struggle against foreign dominators?
Yet in the great epics, such as the Darangen of the Maranao and the Life of Lam-ang of the Ilocanos; this romantic nature of ideal love, heroism, justice and peace has always been part of our psyche.

As for contemporary art, no matter what disturbing images the artist renders on to his works, internally the artist still remains an idealist who believes in better things to come. And that is why many artists continue to live the bohemian life, sacrificing comfort for a future in art.

INSET 8

Noel Cuizon’s mixed-media images of the past and present call upon a yearning for the simpler times.

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