UP on a Sunday

I was in UP today to attend the 3rd session of a Basic Scriptwriting workshop at the UP Film Institute. Classes are held at the Videotheque part of the building, the area facing Quezon Hall. Today, we started past 1pm and was supposed to end at 4pm, but class was interesting and we extended until 6pm.

On my way out and walking towards a waiting shed across Quezon Hall, I bumped into an old friend while he was with some artists (some I knew from UP) for a weekend longboarding hang-out. I chatted with him for a few minutes and asked how he was doing with his art and exhibits. Glad to know that he’s busy with group shows until the end of the year. It was really getting dark now, so we said our goodbyes.

I decided to catch a cab in front of the Bahay ng Alumni, so I had to walk back from in front of the College of Music and then walk on the road between the Music Building and UP Theater. There were still a lot of people jogging and walking alone, in pairs or in groups. Some cyclists were sitting on their bikes, having a conversation and probably waiting for a decision on where to go next.

I realized I missed hanging out in UP, walking around and enjoying the place. Sometimes my friends and I would go all the way here from Katipunan to take our evening walks. I used to live inside the campus for 4 years. This place really became  home to me.

Walking back guided by yellow lights from streetlamps on the road between the College of Music and UP Theater, I saw a guy (most likely a student) playing an interesting looking musical instrument at the side of the Music building. With only a wire fence between me and him, I stayed for some minutes to listen to him practice. He was playing an Erhu, a Chinese fiddle. After a short break from playing, I asked if I could take his picture because it seemed like a rare occurrence and he gamely said yes.

I really had a great day today, so I walked away feeling light with music surrounding the cool October night.

Cherry Blossoms

our time is made short
love ripens, then falls away
like cherry blossoms

d. s., 2009

(above is a screenshot from the movie, “5cm Per Second”)

***

We watched a japanese anime movie last week entitled “5cm Per Second”. The film consists of 3 segments, all beautifully drawn and colored. From its wikipedia entry, it explains that the movie’s title comes from “the speed at which the cherry blossom petals fall, petals being a metaphorical representation of humans, reminiscent of the slowness of life and how people often start together but slowly drift into their separate ways”.

A friend of my boyfriend, an American living in Japan, was here for the week to visit the Philippines. While we were watching the movie, she noted the fascination of cherry blossoms in Japanese culture. Interestingly, she said that the cherry blossoms ripen in a week to 2 weeks, then all  the flowers fall from the trees like snow. Locals and tourists come out at this time of the year to stay under the trees and experience this surreal and beautiful event. She added that as much as they celebrate the short span of time these flowers bloom, they too mark its sweet passing.

After watching the movie, it again reminded me that our time is short and things will continue to remain uncertain. There may be nagging questions about the future, but I guess it is always best that we continue to remain mindful and expressive of our love. Cheesy, I know.

I wish I can be in Japan next summer and experience this phenomenon myself. I would really love to be there. I want to see the flowers in full bloom and wait for them to fall on me like pink snow. That would be really amazing.

Carl Jung and a Lot of Color

Apologies for being away from the wordpress page for so long. I’ve been busy with a lot of things. Finally, at least, I’m able to find the time to write about wonderful things that have happened so far.

First up, out of intense curiosity, I took a class on self-exploration managed by four wonderful Jungian psychologists. I’ve been reading the book “Women Who Run with the Wolves” by Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estes (also a Jungian psychologist) and have been mesmerized by the use of myths and folktales as a form of initiation into the unconscious (pertaining to the lives of women). Throughout my life, stories have made a huge impact; stories inspire as much as they heal. Then serendipity sends a text message and I jump in to take the 4-day workshop.

During the workshop, we took self-exploration tests, told each other fragments of our life stories, drew and colored mandalas, and listened to stories from Greek mythology. What fascinated me were the stories. Maybe because of the gifted storyteller? The characters seemed so alive, real, and breathing beside me. The archetypes fit into the people I live with.

Did I learn more about myself? Of course. Jungian psychology places a strong emphasis on the inner world. There were a couple of aha! moments, lots of “that’s why, now I know…”. I also learned more about the people who surround me and how, at this point in time, we unconsciously play out our archetypal roles. These are  roles that we fit into because of influences in society, family, and other relationships. Hopefully, I learn to become more aware of  the things that I do and feel, and transcend the limits of archetypes to discover what I am truly made of. After that brief workshop, it’s nice to see the world revealed in a different way.

Next up! I’m so happy that “Provenciana” by Apol Lejano-Massebieau is now out! A book launch was organized in Paris last month and sana I was there! The book is just the funniest ever! Apol is just such a funny and talented writer…and that’s still an understatement. I’ve been a long time fan of her blog that chronicles her new life and adventures in the South of France. I’m really so happy that she loved the book cover that I designed for her. My friend, Bernice, did an amazing job designing the inside pages and filling the book with lovely illustrations. Wonderful and such an inspiring project to work on – Merci beaucoup, Apol!

And finally, I did some illustrations  for the new Spark Hope board at Starbucks. I’m glad the 5-piece set came out well – well, on my part. I just love it when I get to work on watercolor textures, line drawings, etc. Exciting rin to see how they’ll go together with the photographs once working on them in the computer. I’m glad that the baristas at Katipunan like them. If they’re happy, I’m happy.

Yey, now I can’t wait to work on new stuff for two exhibits in November!

Untitled

(Interior) Tolentino Hall, UP Fine Arts Diliman. January 2009.

Early January of this year, I dropped by the College of Fine Arts to have my canvas prepared for an exhibit. Sprawled around the college grounds beside the Painting classrooms, were the huge colorful constructions that were paraded at last month’s Lantern Parade. Some maintenance guys that I knew  were dismantling them, breaking their wooden bones.

At that time of the year, the students haven’t returned from their Christmas break, and so the atmosphere at the college was quite and empty. Too quite and empty, memories rushed in to make some noise. I had one of the best times in this place.

***

Every time summer comes, I get nervous. In April, the College of Fine Arts begins its drawing workshops. And most of the time, I’m pretty sure the people enrolled there will be taking the Talent Test.  In 1999, I took that same workshop and most of us, well except 2 or 3 in a class of 20 or more, were going to take that test. I had a wonderful teacher and it was she who taught me how to draw better. I didn’t pass the UPCAT, so this was my lifeline to the college of my dreams. I swear, it was UP Fine Arts or out of school youth.

Well, I didn’t pass on my first try, which really really sucked. I think I made my parents really nervous when I didn’t want to go to another university because I felt that the shortest way of getting into FA was to just focus on my drawings. So we made a deal, if I don’t pass it the second time, I move on and enroll at the university that accepted me.

To keep me busy for a year, I did some independent studying – the most fun that I could think of. I bought a thick history book, National Geographic magazines, and read the newspapers everyday. I took another drawing class to refine what I learned. I also got myself a book that taught me the value of writing daily and showing up on the blank page for morning pages, and having artist dates with myself in galleries and coffee shops.

Although I had fun, it was also very lonely. I was at home most of the time with my older sister, mostly keeping to ourselves as we worked on our own stories or drawings. Sometimes, I didn’t feel like doing anything and just lie in bed all day. Merienda time, we’d take a break and hangout together to talk about what we’ve done, our concepts, our ideas, this and that guy, showbiz chismis, and a lot of other interesting topics.

At an exhibit in Glorietta, I met an artist who asked me what I wanted to pursue. I said I liked writing and painting, but that I really wanted to paint. He gave me the worst advice ever, “Why don’t you become a writer? There are already so many painters. We need people to write about art.” And then hands me a postcard invite to one of his exhibits. I couldn’t believe he said that. The world will never have enough of painters – or whatever kind of artist they want to be: musicians, directors, etc.

When April rolled in the next year, I took the Talent Test again and got accepted. For days, I slept with a smile on my face.  I know not everyone who wanted to be in that year passed. I’ve seen a lot of them cry when they didn’t see their names on that list. I hope they try again, and again if they have to.

When I finally met my classmates (some of them became my greatest friends), I learned that some of us shared the same stories. For us, there was no other way to live but to pursue our bliss.

Our Lives in Cantos

Images: A study with charcoal and watercolor; Final work with pen and watercolor

Looking forward to Friday’s exhibit and still very nervous. This is how I describe my feelings towards showing my work: I feel naked and I haven’t done that workout yet. Or I could just change the way I feel about it by thinking that this could be my first weigh in, and see how I improve from here. I’m just so thankful that I got the chance to do this.

And if you missed our press release from last Monday’s Inquirer Arts and Books section (pageC3), here’s the full and unedited text:

Three Artists Explore Their Lives in Cantos

Our lives are marked by chapters. Inspired by the great Italian poet Dante Alighieri, three young artists lift verses from one of his greatest works, The Divine Comedy, and from it weave their own stories. In the poem, Dante casts himself as a pilgrim on a journey through the consuming fires of Hell, the steep mountain of Purgatory, and the lush gardens of Heaven. In the group exhibit of Nikki Abaya, Dang Sering, and Mimi Tecson, works from their own journeys will be shown on March 20, 7 p.m., at White Box Gallery, Cubao X, Quezon City.

Upon seeing Beatrice Portinari, it was love at first sight for Alighieri. To represent his great love, Nikki Abaya cloaks herself in the perfume of Beatrice. Abaya’s portraits in oil conjure images of this magical woman, the source of the poet’s joy and pain, which spurred him to write the beautiful verses of La Vita Nuova, a collection of love poems.  The Divine Comedy may have helped him come to terms with his life and, eventually, lay a path to find his great love. His death one evening in September 1321 allowed him to join Beatrice in Paradise.

Dang Sering’s work touches on the fires of Hell – the fires that consume and conceal. Her works present Hell as a place of concealment, the opposite of Heaven as revelation. Her illustrations serve as symbolic preludes that may have eventually led to her wandering into the dark wood. The graphic fires are Hell closing in, suppressing us from seeing the whole picture and our innate goodness, serving only a narrow vision of ourselves.

Mimi Tecson’s work takes off from the middle of the tale. With the map of her life before her, Tecson relies on memory as she lays the cornerstones that mark all her 27 years. In her works, Heaven represents the happiest moments of her life, while Hell brings out the saddest times. In her boxes populated with small plastic found objects, she reconstructs a life of consequences. Her work serves as an overview of decisions made, circumstances accepted, and the possibilities for adventure.

“Cantos”, in Italian, means “songs”.  With still so much to discover, these young artists are, hopefully, learning how to move to their own music.

***

Please come! There’s art, food, and friends. Oh yeah, there’s beer too.:)

Exhibit Coming Up!

This 3 by 4 ft. canvas is blank no more!

Since late December of last year, I’ve been working on concepts, verses, sketches, and studies for my upcoming group exhibit. I’m so glad to be finally putting out work in a gallery (or on public, gasp!)…something I haven’t done in a long time since I graduated in 2004.

I’ve been wanting to do an exhibit for a long time now, but didn’t know exactly what to paint about. I felt like I just didn’t paint whatever for all the world to see. These art experiments are done for my own personal curiosity.

There have been a lot of experiences and issues that I’ve tried to grapple with in my own life. And as I was on my way out of  internal turmoil (this I failed to see because I was in it) and trying to make sense of things,  serendipity makes a visit. A friend asked me to join a group exhibit – and I’ve been invited many times before, but felt I wasn’t ready – but somehow, I agreed and have been full of excitement. When she pitched her concept for the exhibit, the idea just completely resonated with me.

In our exhibit, our works take inspiration from Dante Aleghieri’s Divina Commedia (The Divine Comedy). In this Italian epic poem, written between 1308 and 11321, Dante (the poet as pilgrim) explores the Christian afterlife in Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory. What is interesting about this work is how the writer plays himself, the protagonist of his own verses.

What we take from this epic poem are the verses that resonate in our own lives and how it inspires our own journey.

Hello World!

And we sail on to 2009!

I’m really looking forward to this year. I’ve got lots and lots of plans, ofcourse. Looking forward to more adventures, travels, lots of art and love!

“Be happy for this moment. This moment is your life.” Omar Khayyam

I hope all your dreams come true.