Circle

A VETERAN sculptor now teaching in UST has bagged the prestigious Metrobank Prize for Achievement in Sculpture during the Metrobank Art and Design Excellence competition last September 9.

Glass sculptor Noell El Farol, who teaches at the College of Fine Arts and Design (CFAD), won the award, which recognizes the excellence of mid-career sculptors.

El Farol teaches Materials and Graphics at the CFAD. He previously taught the same subject at the University of the Philippines. Aside from sculpting, El Farol is also known as an installation artist, printmaker, and painter. His works have been recognized outside the country.

El Farol began exhibiting his works in 1978 and has since done 13 solo and more than 50 group exhibitions.

TIME for the mentors to shine.

Faculty members of the College of Fine Arts and Design (CFAD) showcased their individual strengths as artists in a group exhibit at the UST Museum last August 25.

An on-and-off tradition, Sikad, CFAD! featured a variety of artworks which ranged from intricate paintings to sharp photography.

CFAD Dean Cynthia Loza said the exhibit served as a special “bonding moment for the faculty members.”

“This is to show the camaraderie between our professors. We are trying to revive and bring out the closeness of the faculty members in order to ensure a productive academic year,” she told the Varsitarian.

She said the opportunity for the mentors to showcase their works to the University audience would also help in their development as artists.

MALIBAN kay Jose Rizal at iba pang mga tanyag na Tomasino, isang alumnus din ang nagpatunay na hindi suntok sa buwan ang maging parehong dalubhasa ang dalawang nagtutunggaling disiplina––agham at sining––pagkatapos niyang maipamalas ang galing sa medisina at pagpipinta.

Ngunit hindi man lang nasilayan ni Dr. Toribio Herrera (1888-1968) ang pagbibigay-pugay sa kanya noong Hunyo 24 sa Government Service Insurance System Museum of Art, kung saan isinapubliko sa ikalawang pagkakataon ang kayang mga obra maestro sa isang exhibit na pinamagatang “Medisining: The Art of Toribio Herrera.”

Unang ipinakita ang mga gawa ni Herrera noong 1972, apat na taon matapos siyang pumanaw.

Ayon kay Mary Ann Venturina-Bulanadi, ang co-curator ng exhibit at propesor sa College of Fine Arts and Design sa Unibersidad, isa sa mga misyon ng exhibit ay ang maipakilala si Toribio Herrera sa kasalukuyang henerasyon.

NITONG nakaraang Hulyo 30 hanggang Agosto 27, sa ikatlong pagkakataon, itinanghal muli ang International Silent Film Festival dito sa Maynila, kung saan tampok ang limang lumang pelikula.

Isa sa mga pelikulang ipinalabas ay ang La Aldea Maldita o Ang Isinumpang Bayan, na nagmula pa sa Espanya at dinala ng Instituto Cervantes. Kinunan ang pelikulang ito noong taong 1930 kung kailan hindi pa kayang pagsamahin sa pelikula ang boses ng mga artista, at kinakailangan pang basahin ang dialogo bilang talababa.

Ngunit ang kakaiba sa panonood ng La Aldea ay sinabayan ito ng nakagaganang tugtugin mula sa bandang Affinity ni Johnny Alegre. Sa loob ng sinehan ay nandoon mismo ang banda na tumutugtog ng kung ano ang akma para sa ipinapalabas na eksena.

 Ang La Aldea Maldita ay tungkol sa maliit na bayan ng Kastila na tinamaan ng sakuna kaya nangamatay ang lahat ng pananim at nagutom ang mga naninirahan dito.

SA KABILA ng kanilang mga malaking pinagkaiba, nakapagpasagawa ang mga Tomasinong sina Angelo Suarez at Costantino Zicarelli ng isang eksibit na naglalayong palawakin ang angkop na paksa ng pagkakaiba sa The Suarelli Brothers Have Nothing To Do With Each Other, na itinanghal sa blanc compound, Shaw Boulevard mula Agosto 1 hanggang 21.

Sa kanilang pinaka-unang two-man show, nilayon nina Suarez at Zicarelli sa The Suarelli Brothers—isang pangalan mula sa kanilang pinaghalong apelyido—na tuklasin ang magiging bunga kapag ipinagsama ang dalawang bagay na walang kinalaman sa isa’t isa at kung ano ang magiging epekto nito sa mga manonood.

Gamit ang teknikong juxtaposition, nabigyan ng mga artista ng aktibidad at buhay ang naturang eksibit.

“Sa pagtatabi nila, nagkakaroon ng interaksyon—o nagtatalo, para mas nakaka-angkop—ang mga gawa namin,” sabi ni Suarez, na nagtapos ng kursong Literature noong 2005.

MAPANGUTYA at mapanlaban sa kanilang mga point of view, halatang may bahid din pala ng pagka-rebelde ang dugo ng mga Tomasinong artista matapos maparangalan ang dalawang alumni mula sa College of Fine Arts and Design (CFAD) sa nakaraang 13 Artists Awards sa Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) noong ika-siyam ng Hulyo.

Inihahandog ng isang beses kada tatlong taon, kinilala sa 13 Artists sina Buen Calubayan at Raul Ignacio “Iggy” Rodriguez bilang dalawa sa mga pinakatanyag na pausbong na mga lokal na artista, dala ng kanilang mga obrang lumilihis sa tradisyonal na gawi ng sining.

FOR THE first time, a comedy won the grand prize in the the Cinemalaya Film Festival, the annual showcase of independent movies. Last Supper No. 3, a farce about what its filmmakers, Veronica Velasco and Jinky Laurel, claim is a true incident, an extended legal wrangling over a lost Last Supper print, beat more popular favorites, including Astig, a cinema-verite-style tale of Manila’s seamy underbelly which, during the awards night on July 26, had early on been winning the most awards, such as best director (Giuseppe Sampedro), best sound, and best supporting actor (Arnold Reyes). Some considered Last Supper’s triumph as an upset.

DESPITE the absence of a film education program, UST has produced a number of filmmakers who have contributed to the vibrancy of the Philippine independent cinema, such as Gil M. Portes, who predated indie filmmaking by some 30 years (his first movie, Tiket Mama, Tiket Ale, Sa Linggo ang Bola, starring Gina Pareno and Eddie Garcia, was independently produced in 1976; so was his internationally acclaimed Munting Tinig in 2002), Michiko Yamamoto (writer of the award-winning Magnifico, Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros, and Endo), and of course, Brillante Mendoza, who was named best director in this year’s Cannes international film festival and was honored by the Cinemalaya this year with the special screening of his Serbis, which became last year the first Filipino movie in a quarter of a century to break into the Cannes competition.

THE SHORT movies in competition were very engaging. Borgy Torres’ Bonsai, which won the Cinemalaya best short film, is about an obese security guard trying to woo a washerwoman. For a short space of 20 minutes (the limit in the competition), it manages to draw from the audience varied emotions of repulsion, interest, and heartbreak.

The Special Jury Award as runner-up best film went to Thomasian Rommel “Milo” Tolentino’s Blogog, which, like his celebrated Andong (last year’s grand prize winner), is another charming take on Pinoy childhood. It is about a boy who finds a filthy ball in the creek that tosses by itself and can even teleport. The seeming magical ball conjures the magic and yearnings of childhood.

Dexter Cayanes won the best director for Musa, about Tatang, an old man who can miraculously heal wounds, and Bienvenido, who desires revenge against people who oppress women and homosexuals. The film is noted for its poetry and power.