“COLONY”
Medium: plastic
(various dimensions)
2021
During my childhood, every time I discover that a colony of ant or bee has established or made a beehive on the wall or tree, I would poke it with a stick— maybe due to curiosity of what will happen or what is inside— I would get stung by the insects. It is a defense mechanism of every living thing when their livelihood or home is being destroyed or an attack occurred, they will retaliate and make another wall or barrier to prevent another assault to happen. The sting is like the UP- DND accord, which prevents the police and soldiers from entering the campus and as we celebrate the 50th year of Diliman Commune, the accord was terminated.
My artwork is a 40- inch- diameter, 18- inch- thick installation made from plastic bottles, caps and empty paint tubes, connected thru a GI wire frame by a cable tie representing a beehive. A home is a place where we are nurtured and where we feel accepted, thus we must protect it from getting destroyed. Our university is the home of every Iska and Isko and we must keep the predators from entering our premises.
A nurse by profession, he attended his first workshop dubbed “Reviving the 1590 History Art Workshop” in 1985, under Angelito De Guzman.
His has been winning art awards since 1987. The most recent was as Honorable Mention, 2018, Non-Representational Category, GSIS Art Competition.
Currently, he is taking his Second Degree, Bachelor of Fine Arts, Major in Sculpture at The University of the Philippines, Diliman.