With the rise of talented artists on social media platforms and new artists finding their footing during the pandemic, the public is treated to an array of artworks that fall beyond the fine arts or bound by the gallery system. Their platforms become the internet, independent art spaces, and occasionally group shows in actual galleries. Collectively, the artworks evoke a sense of awe (mangha) in its act of creating (likha).
The upcoming exhibition, “Mangha-Likha: Defying Art Conventions,” brings together the visual expressions of various artists with the aim to shift commonly held public perception about art, artists, and art making. The exhibit introduces the beauty of artworks made of unconventional materials or medium.
Participating artists include Mai Pimentel de Dios, Tess Ureta Aligaen, Sasha Garcia, Gilbert Calderon Angeles, Marvel Obemio, Noel Abad Quidlat, Percy Denolo, and Jordan Bulanit Mang-osan. They transform all kinds of unconventional materials—from discarded palochina, pull tabs and old toys, mud, and single-use plastic silver laminates to thread with upcycled fabric, masking tape, and sunlight on wood into a multitude of artworks.
As such, the “Mangha-Likha” exhibit is a celebration of the postmodern attitude towards the unconventional, or going beyond the norm. It also relays a strong message on sustainability, inclusivity, equality, solidarity, ecological balance, and recycling, while promoting the values of courage, resilience, determination, resourcefulness, and originality.
“In putting together the Mangha-Likha exhibit, we were able to find a common thread out of a diverse group of artists in terms of style, experience, and training,” shares exhibit curator, Mary Ann Venturina Bulanadi. “As individual artists, they already shine in their own right. But together, their collective talent blends together well on canvases that highlight outsider art. We are excited to tell the stories behind these pieces and the skill it takes to transform mostly sustainably-sourced materials—or junk, in most cases—into something so beautiful and inspiring.”
The exhibit opens from August 17 to September 18, 2023 at the Small Room, Gateway Gallery. Opening reception and catalog launch will be held on August 16. A video tour featuring the artists at work in their studios or creative workspaces captured by the Equinox team will be launched on August 29.
“Mangha-Likha: Defying Art Conventions” is a project of the J. Amado Araneta Foundation with a grant from the National Commission for Culture and the Arts.
