THE UST Atelier Alumni Association, Inc. (USTAAI) featured the works of 27 Thomasian artists in the annual “The Distinguished” exhibit on July 20 at the Opus Mall in Quezon City.
Abe Orobia, public relations officer and project organizer for USTAAI, said the annual event was supported by the Distinguished Thomasian Alumni Night (DTAN), dedicated to its awardees.
Now on its fourth run, “The Distinguished” honors Thomasian proponents of Modernism in the Philippines.
“We conceptualized this as early as 2021 because we have exhibitions that keep on going,” Orobio told the Varsitarian.
Among the art pieces exhibited were Salvador Ching’s 24×24-in. “Untitled” acrylic and graphite canvas. Six layers of color delineate his roots in Bulacan through two original photos of his grandmother and the Barasoain Church.
“Ngayon, sabi ko, darating ‘yung time, [na] babalik sa ‘zero-zero’ lahat,” he said, describing the visible numeral. “Ang message doon is, time is about counting. Laging ‘yon: panahon, oras, araw, nagko-count tayo,” Ching said.
Angono-based artist Nemesio “Nemiranda” Miranda Jr. grounded his art on the human body in motion.
His “Bedtime Stories” series, composed of 18×12-inch mixed-media-on-paper artworks, center on a couple in their bed, reflecting the natural rhythm of human emotion and connection through their intimacy.
“[W]hat I am trying to show here is my ability to draw human form from pure imagination, where the movement of the human form [has a rhetorical] composition that goes around its lines —unifying the whole composition with lines that connect another,” Miranda said.
Renowned glass sculptor Ramon Orlina displayed his expertise in two glassworks: a 28×27×24-cm. crystal titled “Summit of Hope” and a 43×32×29-cm. peridot titled “Fortune 8.”
Orlina’s creative process strays from the ordinary as it starts from holding the glass, and not with initially conceptualizing the piece. He draws inspiration from the environment to let the material guide him in shaping its own form.
“[Para] sa akin, may material ako hinahawakan e, glass. Sinu-suit ko doon sa paggawa ng glass ‘yung aking idea. ‘Yun ang kaibahan sa paggawa ng iba,” Orlina said.
Jose “Joe” Datuin” reflects his family, surroundings, and experiences in his sculptures, exhibiting an 8.75×5.5×7-in. stainless steel on black marble sculpture titled “Mother and Child MSeries ‘19.”
The sculpture recalls a personal achievement—when he won grand prize in the sculpture category of the International Olympic Committee’s 2008 Sport and Art Contest in Beijing.
“Kasi nanalo ako ng five rings e, ‘yung dancing rings…so from there, gumagawa na rin ako ng sarili kong mga composition—ito ‘yung isa sa mga signature ko, ‘yung mother and child,” Datuin said.
Other participating Thomasian artists were Angelito Antonio, Tam Austria, Manuel Baldemor, Norma Belleza, Remy Boquiren, Richard Buxani, Dante Castillo, Ramoncito Ocampo Cruz, Fil Delacruz, Janos Delacruz, Anita Del Rosario, India Dela Cruz, Edgar Doctor, Carla Gamalinda, Raul Isidro, Prudencio Lamarroza, Willy Tadeo Layug, Derrick Macutay, Rodney Martinez, Marge Organo, Jose Tence Ruiz, Danny Santiago and Pinggot Zulueta.
“The Distinguished” art exhibition ran from July 20 to Aug. 3. Rhamiel Mae T. Vicente
