ONE ELEMENT that unifies art works together is expression so that young and promising art aficionados called Kulay Malaya have banded together to cultivate their art and individual styles.
“We may not be able to send our message by words, but we could convey it through our paintings.” said Eleazar Orobia, a College of Fine Arts and Design professor. “While our group is still focused on personal topics, we would also like to paint about socially relevant issues.”
In the last three months, Kulay Malaya has successfully executed their infant steps toward the pursuit of their vision, largely through exhibits.
Dream catchers
Awakening the sleeping emotions and interest of its spectators through striking paintings, Kulay Malaya’s art exhibit, Tulog, evoked the significance of sleep and dreams.
The exhibit last August was organized by the Kapisanan ng mga Pintor sa Pilipinas Atbp. Sining, Inc. and the UST Museum.
“While our group never confines itself to a single style, we share the same goal of uplifting artistry and inspiring young artists,” said Eleazar Orobia, head of Kulay Malaya. Imbued with styles, the portraits exude a different ambiance based on how the painters each captured the essence of dream.
Jun Arellano’s Thicker than Water, which makes use of digitally manipulated carbon tone, shows the mild and tender connection shared by a mother and a child. The poignant image emphasized by its immaculate white backdrop evokes peaceful bliss.
Maria Wingkee’s Minsan Gusto Mo Na Lang Ipahinga and Lora Corla’s Itutulog Mo Na Nga Lang Ba show contrasting images to indicate the duality between being asleep and being awake.
Winkee’s acrylic piece features birds surrounding a heart-shape scene etched in the center, where the serene pink shade of the sunset emphasized by the vibrant plumage of the birds encircling it elicits nostalgia.
On the other hand, Corla’s painting depicts a girl’s two opposite life experiences. The larger scene in a lighter shade features the girl while she is awake, while the smaller picture projected passively in a darker tone portrays her life while asleep.
Marius Funtillar’s Hindi Ko Na Gustong Matulog, an oil painting, shows the grotesque image of a skinless man and woman on stage surrounded by moons and stars hanging on threads. It perhaps indicates how a person is stripped off his inhibitions in his dream until only his essence remains.
Orobia’s Mariposa portrays a blind-folded girl walking along a shore surrounded by mythical beings like fairies and angels. It signifies dreams as a world of endless possibilities.
Other Thomasian participants in Tulog were John Bautista, Rex Cabaroc, Anton de la Cruz, Aries Mallari, Carlo Ricarte, and Ernesto Villafranca.
‘Dibuho’
As budding artists, Orobia felt elated after having installed an open-theme exhibit at the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) Museum last October 19.
“As young artists, we are proud to be able to present our works at the GSIS Museum since the works of art of several National artists like Juan Luna, Fernando Amorsolo, Botong Francisco and Vicente Manansala are installed there,” Orobia told the Varsitarian.
Titled “Dibuho,” the exhibit showcased 33 paintings by nine participating Thomasian artists together with guest painters Rocky Cayabyab and Carlo Cusi. The exhibit displayed various artistic styles such as realism and surrealism and tackled genre works and religious themes.
Orobia made use of oil on sack cloth in his five artworks to portray the Filipino devotion to the passion of Christ in an unorthodox presentation. His “Ang Paghampas at Pagpuputong ng Koronang Tinik kay Kristo Hesus” views Christ not wearing a crown of thorns, but a wreath of sampaguita instead. Recognizing folklore, “Ang Panalangin sa Hardin ng Gethsemane” depicts the devil as the legendary kapre instead of the traditional biblical presentation of the devil as a serpent. As expected, red dominates much of Orobia’s creations.
Like Orobia, Funtillar uniquely presented Christ’s passion through his painting “Suicide,” which is his own version of the Last Supper. Mounted on a six-by-ten feet canvas, the oil work employs various shades of red to create a surreal rendition of Christ’s final meal, evoking gloom and despair. But instead of the apostles, Christ is surrounded by people in history who committed suicide such as Cleopatra and Marc Anthony, thus the art piece’s title.
In her pop-art painting, “Minsan Gusto Ko Na Lang Magpahinga,” Wingkee paints nature in colors of brown, purple, yellow, and red. At the center of the piece is a heart-shaped picture of trees beside a lake with a flock of swans, basically suggesting serenity.
Mallari’s mixed-media abstract, “Corners of Petals,” is rendered in dark colors of red, blue, and green, perhaps suggesting wildlife and wild imagination.
Carlo Ricarte’s “Tulogwatsa” shows a section of Roxas Boulevard at night. Parked cars and bright lights alongside the dark blue waters of Manila Bay evoke the vibrant but casual nocturnal preoccupations of Manilans.
Other Kulay Malaya artists who participated in the exhibit are Juert Asejo, EJ Villafranca, and Karla Bugayong.
“Maybe later on when we get older we could tackle themes about social realism,” said Orobia.
