Art Lounge Manila trains the spotlight on Mindanaoan artist Kublai Millan whose works range from canvases with colorful palettes to larger-than-life sculptures and monuments in Summa, where he presents his “sum of symbols” — an exploration of his art in its myriad forms.
Kublai Millan, Mindanao’s most prolific visual artist, renders canvases with colorful palettes, larger-than-life sculptures and monuments. Advocating to bring out the stories of Mindanao through his artworks in various forms, Kublai believes that what he has rendered so far is just the tip of the iceberg.
Summa is one of those meanderings his mind has segued to in trying to grasp—in figures and colors—this continuing journey into his art. Abstractions of everyday scenes in Mindanao are seen, as well as nature’s gifts to children’s games and indigenous people’s culture and norms. Summa simplifies the compositions further into symbols, rendering fewer lines through deeper introspections.
Kublai Millan’s ‘Sum of Symbols,’ acrylic on canvas 
Kublai Millan’s ‘Sum of Symbols,’ acrylic on canvas
Summa is about condensing a whole gamut of emotions, experiences and scenes into blocks and figures of colors that brings out “Aha!” moments within those who look long enough. It’s an invitation to let the lines and colors speak their messages from what was there before to what it has become—a synthesis of what the artist has seen and experienced, which he brings with him in this journey beyond just knowing himself as a Mindanaoan artist, but who a Mindanaoan is beyond Mindanao. In the process, too, he is inviting the audience to reflect on the temporariness of what is now to the permanence of who we really are, as one people, as one soul—all of humanity.
Another unique aspect of Millan’s works are his use of organic shapes that resemble geometric figures somewhat favoring a contrasting view of explored open form, piercing figures and objects by letting the space flow through them, blending background into foreground, and showing objects from various angles.
Kublai Millan’s ‘The Clouds in Between,’ acrylic on canvas 
Kublai Millan’s ‘The Clouds in Between,’acrylic on canvas
In this exhibition, Kublai Millan presents his sum of symbols, an exploration of Summa in its myriad forms. It is an invitation to contemplate the interconnectedness of our existence, to navigate the depths of our shared histories, and to find meaning in the profound tapestry of life itself.
Kublai Millan’s “Summa” was exhibited from July 2 to 15 at Art Lounge Manila at The Podium, Ortigas Center, Mandaluyong. The exhibit will be moved to Art Lounge Manila at Molito Lifestyle Center, Ayala Alabang, Muntinlupa from August 1 to 13, 2023.
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