Encounter with the Masters

Philipp Ines

October 25 – November 9, 2020

Kaida Contemporary
Sct. Madrinan, 1103 Quezon City, Philippines

Visual artist Philipp Ines’ works often lie in the intersection of myth and history. Drawing inspiration from local folklore and the allure behind their persistence, he weaves an overarching narrative of a country always peering over the edge of an imposing precipice, standing on its tiptoes as it seeks to make sense not only of its past but also the direction in which it trudges towards. In his latest solo exhibition Encounter with the Masters, Ines turns to religion, painting it as it glides along the latitude of our collective experiences as a people. Employing the influence of Catholic Western art, he illustrates Philippine religion as it takes form in the everyday, bringing focus to its development from something central to our identity as a nation, into an instrument utilized by a select few to seize power and influence.

The glaring discrepancy of these contradictions stand at the forefront of the exhibition. Ines depicts his subjects in classical fashion, expressing a masterful technique in his execution of the interplay between the forms on the canvas and the spaces they occupy. They stand and sit in solitude and huddled close to one another, drawing in the audience’s gaze to the shadows that reside in between the folds of each garment, which fall as softly and gracefully along the curves of their bodies. But Ines manages to add his own personal touch to these nearly-faceless subjects; using oil sticks he grants each figure a unique identity, giving them faces and filling in body parts in abstract form—colorful, eye-catching, and altogether vivid in expression. For the artist, the flexibility that this medium allows adds to the impact and message of the finished work.

Ines’ artistry is rooted in its ability to provide relevant commentary on our current social conditions. In Encounter with the Masters, there is a critique in the loss of meaning of religion as people continually use it as a mere means to an end. What then remains to be religion’s purpose? For something that is inherently believed to uphold ideals that center around kindness and compassion, there seems to have been a perversion of this sacredness into something more sinister, a superficial and surface-level understanding of the virtues they ideally ought to champion. What is left is a two-faced interpretation of religion’s place in society, as those in power use it to further their own personal agendas. And as religion continues to be a driving force behind our nation’s progress (or lack thereof, depending on the situation), we are called to take a step back and examine the multifaceted and diametrically-opposed ways that we as a people preach, practice, and live out our own faith.

Words by Elle Lucena

To view the virtual exhibit: (best on desktop)
https://www.artsteps.com/view/5f8fec097e72742f16f66c0e

To view a slideshow of the works:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1sc8Czfbdck2T64EojIn6ybPuLPEqo1JL/view