ArtFarm is proud to present “Rhythm,” a three-man exhibition featuring the works of Raul Lebajo, Nikulas Lebajo and Ivan Co at ManilART 2019.
“Rhythm” promises to treat viewers’ eyes as well as their other senses to the varying melodious tempos that art offers. Raul Lebajo’s paintings of forest growths, fantastic creatures and dynamic scumbles seem set at a frantic speed. Nikulas Lebajo’s repeated renderings of objects, meanwhile, give a more stable, calm cadence gently bouncing off each element. Ivan Co’s semi-precious stone and gold-plated bejeweled sculptural pieces consist of swinging intricate pendulums akin to metronomes that keep a steady, almost trance-like pace. Combined, the artworks in “Rhythm” play off each other in a harmonious display that’s visceral, artistic and harmonious.
Raul H. Lebajo was born in 1941 and studied at the University of the East in 1965. He eventually finished Fine Arts at the Philippine Women’s University in 1969. After winning the first prize in the 1968 Shell National Student Art Competition, the artist hasn’t looked back, his visual arts career now spanning more than five decades. Awarded a grant by The Illinois Art Council Agency with the support of the National Endowment for the Arts in 1989 and representing the Philippines in the Beaux Arts – Art In The World 1998 Paris exhibit, he has shown his works extensively in Asia, Europe and the United States, with his paintings presented at the National Gallery of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the Art Center of Silpakorn University in Bangkok, Thailand, and various commercial galleries in Hong Kong and Germany. He has also mounted solo exhibitions at the Le Plaza Hotel in Basel, Switzerland, and the Chicago Cultural Center, among others.
His son, Nikulas Lebajo, graduated from the University of the Philippines College of Fine Arts. In 1989, his work was awarded First Prize at the XXII Shell National Art Competition. He was also a finalist at the Metrobank Art Competition and Philippine Art Awards. He has exhibited extensively both in the Philippines and abroad, participating in group shows in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Taipei, Daejeon, Beijing and Shanghai.
Ivan Co is a third-generation jeweler who employs his talents in creating bejeweled and kinetic art pieces. After completing his Multimedia Arts studies at the De La Salle University-College of Saint Benilde, he enrolled in jewelry design at the Gemological Institute of America. He also dabbles in video editing, graphic design, cinematography and motion graphics. He has exhibited his works in Manila and Singapore.
ManilART is celebrating 11 years of showcasing the global Filipino artist from October 9 to 13 at the SMX Convention Center, SM Aura Premier, Taguig City. For more information contact +63 977 807 3369, or email manilartsecretariat@gmail.com. For more details about Rhythm, please email giolebajo@gmail.com or send your queries through the ArtFarm Messenger account.