Text and photos by ELIZABETH LOLARGA
TWO years in the making, “Appasionata” at Altro Mondo has at last seen light.
This light is beamed at the works of Rosario “Charito” Bitanga, Imelda Cajipe Endaya, Lenore RS Lim, Marivic Rufino and Susan Fetalvero Roces. Curated by Deanna Ongpin-Recto, the show underscores how even the most experienced visual artists love to study and experiment, not repeat tried and tested formula.
Rufino recalled, “In 1998, Deanna mounted my exhibit at the UNESCO House in Paris for the Philippine Centennial celebration. I asked her if I could exhibit with Susan. We invited Charito who readily said yes. Deanna asked Lenore and Imelda to make it a five-woman exhibition and chose the name ‘Appasionata,’ Italian for ‘passionate.’”
Bitanga, the most senior, an under-rated but trail-blazer among women artists, has the energy for sculptures in a contemporary medium like resin. She has an oil abstract. Although retired from teaching, she still serves on the board of the Philippine High School for the Arts and remains active in the Art Association of the Philippines.
Known for watercolor abstracts, Rufino now has figurative, mixed-media paintings. Fetalvero Roces explores sculpture. Cajipe Endaya is into large-scale self-portraiture and Lim, monochromatic printmaking.
Of her works featuring heroines, Cajipe Endaya said, “I have done a small self-portrait ‘hybrid-ized’ with the face of Gregoria de Jesus. I am engrossed with making our women heroes more visible to contemporary young audiences. I’d like to imagine citizens today, including myself, being able to emulate their brave deeds in more personal contexts.”
She reads history, especially the Philippines’. From there, she said, “I see to it that I take a unique personal perspective and express a more intimate feeling related to my own experience. I favor rich texture and color contrasts so I use these a lot.”
Fetalvero Roces said her colorful paddles spin off from her 2007 work “Tres Marias” wherein she constructed a three-dimensional, interactive painting. “I realized I wanted works that could be touched and felt. The wooden spatulas became an inspiration to create something. They grew into paddles. They are symbolic, steering you to go with or against the flow. I saw how I could express and interpret my life experiences with the many ups and down.”
Her problem was how to design them to make them presentable. “Inspiration came when I saw a wine bottle cradle. The idea evolved many times until I finally got it right and found the perfect balance.”
Her self-portrait “Para Ti” reflects another passion—dance. She said, “The work reflects my state–looking back, looking forward, looking in.”
Rufino said of the human and fauna figures in her new works: “I’ve always loved horses and children. I used to paint them years ago but not for a show. I decided to do them for this exhibition.
‘Duet’, a horse with a butterfly is Rufino’s self-portrait. “This ‘Infanta’ is my second princess inspired by Velasquez’s ‘Las Meninas.’ I used sand from the Sahara desert and Boracay as her playground by the sea,” she said.
Her works depart from pure watercolor. She said, “Visions and dreams haunt me. I try to capture the mood and feelings in watercolor, my favorite medium. My training has been in this most difficult, exacting medium. Watercolor painting is like poetry. A few watercolors are selected for this show. I have expanded to include mixed media and practical art.”
Lim’s works are the fruits of a visit to Shanghai. The museums and galleries there got her interested in Chinese calligraphy and characters, flowers and fruits.
It’s no different from how she derives her ideas. She said, “I like to take walks around the neighborhood, markets, galleries, bookstores. I take the public transportation so I can be with real people. While I’m traveling, I think, put concepts down in writing, take pictures, get reference materials together and prepare what I need for studio time.”
Part of the time she lives in New York where she prints her works at the Robert Blackburn Printmaking Workshop. For “Appasionata,” she worked with master printmaker Devraj Dakoji, using the xerox litho transfer technique.
“For ‘Alaala,’ she revisited past images and used used the chine colle technique in the past. “This time, I used bigger pieces of paper, more colors and textures. In ‘Lotus,’ I added calligraphy,” she said.
Ongpin-Recto said it was awesome experience working with artists passionate about their art. “The energy level was always high: discussions brimmed with enthusiasm and ebullience. On one issue, when deadlines were approaching and agreement seemed impossible to get, I stepped in and assumed my curatorial responsibility by taking a decision to settle the issue. Otherwise, ‘Appassionata’ was a unique, pleasurable exercise!”
“Appasionata” runs until Oct. 4. Altro Mondo at Greenbelt 5 is open daily, 11 a.m.-8 p.m.