The Marvelous Art of Maestro Philipp Badon
by Noel Sales Barcelona
As an artist, Philipp Brita Badon has captured the hearts and soul of his audience by his playfulness in using lines and colors – encapsulating various moods brought by places, thought, faces, and moments.
It is refreshing to see new and old works of Badon in just one place, amid a raging pandemic. The pieces truly express the way that the artist sees the world – different, full of eccentricities, showing both dynamism and being static, and of course, colorful. Thus, the title of the show Pandemic Art Burst aptly describes the works of Badon—it is a colorful and magnificent way to counter the darkness brought by the Covid-19 pandemic which left our world partially blind, if not, crippled.
His set of works dating from pre-Covid time (2018 and 2019) until now, when the world is slowly recuperating from the onslaught of the deadly virus is truly remarkable. They show various facets of human life and existence. They talked about family and while each person in the family possesses different characteristics and with different line of thoughts and doing things, they still act as one – united by that strong force called love, amour.
While other works tackled about myths, beliefs, and nature. His Flight of the Bumblebee, for example, captured the importance of this little creature in the ecosystem, particularly in keeping the food chain intact. The bee in mysticism and spirituality also signifies the importance of hard work, that sense of community, and of course, the spirit of abundance since they are the ones responsible in turning flowers into seeds and then fruits through pollination.
Another set of works that captured my imagination talks about the Heaven. No, not the big blue skies above us with billowing clouds being blown by the wind. We are talking about where God supposedly dwells together with the saints and of course, the angels.
In Christianity, the heaven is a place of rest for those who have been able to carry their crosses and followed the Teachings of Christ. It is the place where happiness and joy are overflowing, and no one has to suffer, die and go hungry there.
In some of his works, he thought of dragons and good fortune, the rain and the sea. All are symbols of the subconscious, the awakening to the recognition of the Self and our potential in achieving enlightenment and liberation from ignorance, suffering brought by our monkey minds, and of course, attachment to this material world.
Meanwhile, as a traveler who appreciates different cultures, especially those of the indigenous peoples, he has been able to capture in abstract the fullness of the beauty of these often neglected and marginalized people of our society. Which is saddening in fact; for these tribes (sorry for the use of the term) are the true keepers of the stories of this living and ever-evolving world of ours. The myths sung and narrated by the tribal people are actually the stories of the evolution of our own Consciousness or our Soul.
Moreover, he also painted about himself as an artist whose soul is connected to the Super Soul, which is the eternal spring of beauty, wisdom, and inspiration.
To sum up, the works of Badon which has been exhibited in a UniMart Capitol Commons in Pasig City, organized by ArtisteSpace are not only a show of his artistic prowess but a reminder to all of us that despite what has transpired in the past year, life is still beautiful and worth living for. The show runs from May 25th up to June 8th, 2020.
