To mark the 60th anniversary of bilateral relations between Malaysia and the Philippines, the Malaysian Embassy in Manila, led by Ambassador Dato Abdul Malik Melvin Castelino, is holding an art expo of the two countries’ art at One Ayala, Makati from Aug. 30 to Sept. 1.
By Alex Y. Vergara
Since the dawn of time, art has always been a primary form of human expression, mirroring the hopes, dreams, aspirations, and even culture, traditions and geography of a particular people. Over the millennia, it has also become a bridge promoting understanding and linking different groups of people and nationalities towards their shared humanity. People at the Embassy of Malaysia in Manila, led by His Excellency Ambassador Dato Abdul Malik Melvin Castelino, are again using the arts to attain this noble end
To mark the 60th anniversary of the bilateral relations between Malaysia and the Philippines, the Malaysian Embassy, in collaboration with One Ayala, Makati City Council and Kuala Lumpur-based Artemis Art, is holding an art expo from Aug. 30 to Sept. 1 at Level 2, Concourse, One Ayala, Makati City.
With the theme “Celebrating Friendship Through Art – A Kaleidoscope of 60 Years of Diplomatic Relations Between Malaysia and the Philippines,” the art expo will feature the artworks of Malaysian and Filipino artists. Participating Malaysian artists are Dato Prof Tajuddin Ismail, SC Shekar, Juhari Said, Anniketyni Madian and Syahbandi Samat, while the Filipino participating artists are Anthony Palomo, Ramon Orlina, Fracisco Guerrero, Dennis Bato and Niakie.
“One of the key components of what we’re trying to do is to try to see Filipino and Malaysian artists work together to produce some pieces that project the two nations’ shared history,” Castelino, in press conference held at his Makati residence, said. “We also want to see whether this could be replicated in different times over the next couple of years. This is the first time we are doing a joint art expo under my watch. Although this has been done before, we want to bring it back and relish it as one of the hallmarks celebrating 60 years of Philippine-Malaysian bilateral relations.”
Each of the five artists from the Philippines and Malaysia will be showcasing some of their finest artworks. Some of the pieces are new, while one featured artwork, the collaboration between Bato and Samat, two artists from the Philippines and Malaysia, respectively, with very different styles and mediums, is an installation art made specially for the art expo.
“The idea behind the collaboration is parallelism,” said Bato. As its name implies, parallelism is the state of being the same or having more things in common than they have differences. But despite their attempts to go into a parallel direction, the artists promise to be true to and respect each other’s styles. They aim to complement and lift each other’s styles up rather than clash with or overshadow the other.
While Bato started as a graffiti and street artist before transitioning into more mainstream art, Syahbandi, a surrealist, uses ballpoint pen, sometimes in different colors, on canvas. Apart from living in different cities, the main challenge while they were in the process of collaborating was their differences in styles as well as temperaments. For one, Bato’s art, by its very nature, is public, while Syahbandi’s art stems from the personal.
“We’ve only met yesterday, but we have been in constant communication since we started working on the project,” said Bato. “We’ve already prepared our respective pieces and will be installing them together in the coming days. It will be a surprise.”
“That’s the part where we had to think,” said Syahbandi. “It’s a collaboration. As such, we can’t go over each other’s identities. We have to combine and make it happen.”
Through the efforts of Artemis and its Manila-based partner Art Lounge Manila, people behind the effort made sure to showcase a wide range of styles and even mediums through the featured artists. The celebrated Orlina, who’s married to a Malaysian, for instance, has been a personal choice of Castelino.
Orlina, who will be showcasing three artworks, is one of two featured sculptors in the art expo. While he works on glass, the Malaysian Anniketyni Madian expresses her art through wood.
Aside from the artworks, visitors will be treated to cultural performances by the Touché Production, which came all the way from Malaysia. Visitors may also participate in the panel discussions which will be participated in by some of the featured artists themselves.
On Aug. 31, the panel discussion will delve on the “Perspectives on Contemporary Southeast Asian Art,” while “Perspectives on Contemporary Photography from Two Generations of Photography” will be the focus of the discussion on Sept. 1.
The art expo is open to the public for free. The opening ceremony will be held on Aug. 30. Castelino; Hon. Abigail S. Binay-Campos, mayor of Makati City; government officials, members of the diplomatic corps and other dignitaries are expected to grace the opening ceremony.
Through the Art Expo, the Embassy of Malaysia in Manila hopes the visitors will be able to appreciate art, especially Malaysian and Filipino art. Likewise, it is the hope of the Embassy of Malaysia in Manila that the Art Expo will open the door to more collaborations between Malaysia and the Philippines in the field of arts.
Following the One Ayala event, the artworks will be moved to and showcased at Art Lounge Manila in Molito, Alabang from Sept. 3 to 15. This initiative continues the partnership between Artemis Art and Art Lounge Manila, further fostering cultural exchange and collaboration.
