ARNDT in Berlin is celebrating the opening of a new venue, ARNDT Art Agency A3, with a group exhibition of contemporary Filipino art spread across the two galleries.The artists at the show respond to the notions of what makes art specifically Filipino. They also examine the place that their works occupy within a larger context of international contemporary art.The Filipino word “wasak” means “in ruins.” The word is the title of the exhibition - a reminder of the recent political, social and even meteorological upheavals in the Philippines.Norbert Roldan’s “Hex” (2015, diptych) is an installation which resembles Catholic altarpieces. The artist incorporates decorative elements taken from a church in the Southern Philippines damaged by a typhoon. Through the use of this stark imagery, Roldan’s work is a meditation on the place of religion in the contemporary society.Most works presented at the exhibition are paintings. One of the unifying characteristics of all of the Filipino artists exhibiting at ARNDT is the close attention they pay to technique and execution of the works.In the Zean Cabangis work “It Took Us So Long To Get Here I” (2015, acrylic and emulsion transfer on canvas), photographic images of the past are overlapped with futuristic-looking geometrical shapes in a surreal composition.Alfredo Esquillo’s “Empire, Lost and Found” (2015, fiberglass reinforced resin, metal, wood) is composed of three big installations which consist of large pillars with candle wicks emerging from their top, mounted on rockers resembling the ones used in rocking chairs. This complex work is perhaps the most poignant representation of contemporary Filipino culture – rocking back and forth between the tradition and the contemporary influences.“Wasak!” presents an exciting opportunity to see the most interesting contemporary Filipino artists.Because of the strong bias towards painting at the exhibition, the viewer has the chance to explore thought-provoking parallels and contrasts between the works and the themes they represent.“Wasak! Filipino Art Today” runs at ARNDT and ARNDT ART AGENCY A3 through January 30, 2016. Information: http://www.arndtartagency.com/ARNDT ART AGENCY A3, Fasanenstrasse 28 10719 Berlin;and ARNDT Potsdamer Straße 96, 10785 Berlin, Germany
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