Fats, Vitamins and Minerals

Magandang hapon and greetings to all gathered for the opening of “Diwà’t Kapookán/Articulating Spaces” – the Winners of the 2005 and 2006 WebSining Digital Art Competition.

In “Diwà’t Kapookán/Articulating Spaces” the creative universe is operationalized in the terms “Kapookán” and “Spaces.” These terms suggest the possibility of identifying precise points in space, of making connections, and imbuing them with meaningful structure. “Kapookán” pertains to the center of a place, enabling “space” to extend to “alangaang”, the stratospheric space, including pressure and tide. “Alangaang” links the movement of bodies in space with “laon” — or the passage of time — in a specific place. The terms “Kapookán” and “Spaces” articulate links between space and time in the Filipino universe, a universe of being and memory.

“Diwà’t Kapookán/Articulating Spaces” is also dedicated to the memory of pioneer of digital art and social realist artist Alfredo Manrique, who passed away March 3, 2006.

I would like to remember Al Manrique in this exhibition because, first, he hated art competitions. Although he has sat as juror in art competitions, especially in collegial support of the AAP’s first digital art competition, he generally hated the neo-fascistic culture of art competitions. Second, as a social realist, he hated government propaganda. In his last e-mail to me, just one week before he died, he talked about being a hermit since being diagnosed with COPD emphysema. He said: “Mahirap din yung ermitanyo lalo na ngayong buhay nanaman ang palengke dahil sa praning na sinungaling.” (It’s hard being a hermit especially now that the marketplace is alive again because of the paranoid liar.) And third, I would like to remember Al Manrique in this exhibition because he loved digital art. When I asked if he was making any new works, he said, “puros wallpaper lang ang ginagawa ko ngayon. Hindi na ako makagawa. (I’m making only wallpapers now. I can’t make art anymore.) Maybe it’s the lack of nicotine or oxygen or both.”

Al Manrique’s love for digital art was not only at the level of pretty images or wallpapers, but was a paradoxical will to truth through the manipulation of reality. In his last e-mail, we talked about starting an on-line course on “iteration” which was a term and concept that I got from Al and his works. He said it would be a good topic for virtual art: “Try Try Try maybe this external impetus can help trigger my corrupted creative lies.”

Al Manrique’s “corrupted creative lies” are now freed into his own creative space, his own creative universe.

In the creative universe – where “diwà’t kahulugán” flow into each other, where the possibility of making connections and imbuing them with meaningful structure is created – the artist engages in dialogues with the medium - towards a more independent and self-determined notion of digital art. Eventually, these dialogues are what enlarge our creative spaces – from the building of aesthetic structures to the articulation of a truly free and independent Filipino people – dialogues that “Diwà’t Kapookán/Articulating Spaces” hopes to ignite and nurture.

Welcome to “Diwà’t Kapookán/Articulating Spaces.” Congratulations to the 2005/2006 Websining winners. My most heartfelt thanks to the wonderful enthusiasm of Cris Rollo, Jacqui Del Castillo and Tracey Santiago. Mabuhay ang artistang Pilipino.

EMail This Post This entry was posted by Fats on Friday, March 10th, 2006 at 1:02 am and is filed under Katawan > Mga pa-art show. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.