July 12 – August 12, 2020
Opening
July 12 | 8 PM
Giant Dwarf Art Space
015 Manila East Road Hi-way corner Dona Justa Street, Brgy. San Roque, Angono, Rizal, 1930 Angono, Rizal
“My point is not that everything is bad, but that everything is dangerous, which is not exactly the same as bad. If everything is dangerous, then we always have something to do. So my position leads not to apathy, but to hyper – and pessimistic – activism.”
– Michel Foucault
Surrounded By Water (SBW) was founded by Angono artist Rommel Wire Tuazon in 1998. The name alludes to his hometown as one of the lakeshore communities encircling Laguna de Bay. The gallery was established in Angono and its initial funds for operation came from Wire’s father as a birthday gift.
SBW subsequently moved to a space beside the POEA building at Edsa-Ortigas, then to a warehouse in Cubao. It closed shop as an artist-run space in 2003.
But SBW transcends its physical existence because it also refers to a loose group of artist-friends who, at one time or another, became involved in the running of the artist space.
SBW has now become a landmark and a turning point in Angono’s art history and evolution, and even in the national scene. As the center of young, avant-garde and independent artistic expression, SBW took risks and explored the limits of what constituted art/creative practice. And many of its members have successfully established their individual artistic careers and/or practices.
Surrounded by Water was supposed to have its reunion show at Giant Dwarf Art Space sometime this March. It’s a homecoming of sorts, Angono being SBW’s first home.
And then this pandemic happened.
GD Art Space’s schedule for 2020, like most everyone else’s, was thrown askew.
With or without the CoViD-19, we all feel sort of feverish and disoriented, in varying degrees and ways. It may be from shutting our eyes, to have some respite and relief from all the stress caused by the effects of the lockdowns. Or from simply feeling, as it were, dead to the world.
But not quite. Because even with all these pent-up emotions that we try to control and manage on our own terms, we feel the welling of tears, we feel the warmth of our eyelids. And even if the tears do not actually fall, we realize that this is proof of our ever-resurgent drive to live and survive. No matter the lockdowns. No matter the recession. No matter the Terror. No matter the pandemic.
With this reunion show, Surrounded By Water joins Giant Dwarf Art Space in affirming this.
We shall overcome. While we may be surrounded by all sorts of danger and crises (the pandemic included), it may be wise to take inspiration from SBW’s name. We are surrounded by water. We are surrounded by Life.
Text by Ian Lomongo and Richard Gappi
For viewing appointments and details, contact us at 09771400559 or landline no. (02)83599951. You can also visit our site https://www.giantdwarfph.com/
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