20 February 2011

Art in the Park and in Paracale

Been absent for a week from the blogosphere.   There are so many things running through my mind right now, itching to fill up a week’s worth of blogs.   For now, I’ll talk about art.  After last night’s visit to Art in the Park in Salcedo Village, that seems like a fresh stimulus to reboot this blog.

The Salcedo Village event is an annual gathering of galleries, artists groups, fine arts colleges and other creative collectives in the most relaxing and stylish residential park in Manila.  Kudos to the organizers - my ageless college classmate Lisa Ongpin-Periquet, included - for making art accessible and non-intimidating to Manila residents.   It was nice to see other old college friends like Tina Fernandez, now an accomplished owner/curator of Art Informal, the UP Fine Arts folks (I miss UP and my crazy students) and my Pasay drinking group who came to support Avellana Art Gallery.   My only complaint:  it ended quite early at 10pm.  Wish it’d run till midnight next time so we could party longer in a friendly and colorful setting. 

I was told that the organizers also pegged the price ceiling at 20k.  So the art works were mostly small and un-framed, easier for the booth owners to sell.  That was fine.  But there wasn’t much interesting multi-media stuff.  Stuff that the late Baguio artist and UPCFA alumnus Santiago Bose was known for.











I discovered Santi Bose many years ago through a friend who really knew art (I was and still am a poser; I actually only like art that’s interior-friendly).   There weren’t much multi-media artists during the 80s.  His work was groundbreaking, using indigenous materials, folkloric accessories and junk to compose iconoclastic and irreverent images. 

Bose also did one movie.  He was the production designer Salome, the 1981 film directed by Laurice Guillen.  Salome was well-made, but  it would never be mentioned in the same breadth as Himala or Insiang because it was too much like Kurosawa’s Rashomon.  A retelling of a crime told from different points-of-view. 

Guillen’s vision wasn’t original but Bose’s art direction was most inventive.   His wit, cultural sensitivity and penchant for ethnic imagery were all there.  Salome’s Paracale Camarine Norte was the most beautifully shot and art directed Philippine town in local cinema history.  Himala’s Barrio Cupang in Ilocos would be a close second.

Try to see Salome and discover Santi Bose the production designer.  I just don't know where to get a copy.

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