A sequel to 2023’s “Summa,” “Fifty Summits,” ongoing until today at Art Lounge Manila (Podium), is viewed as the artist’s realization that real art and beauty are in the small things that are easily overlooked—in the people and communities he draws inspiration from, and in the young artists he mentors.
“Fifty Summits” marks a milestone in Kublai Millan’s journey as he strives to paint what he describes as his “realization of the reason behind his rush to ascend while consistently espousing Mindanao—its peace, its culture, and its oneness.” Art Lounge Manila (Podium) exhibits Kublai’s climb to the summit to see his lifelong advocacies as a harmonious whole.
A sequel to 2023’s “Summa”, which was intended to encapsulate his journey as an artist of Mindanao and suggest a deceleration through its simplified lines and figures, “Fifty Summits” emerges as the artist’s realization that real art and real beauty are in the small things that are easily overlooked—in the people and communities he draws inspiration from, and in the young artists he mentors.
That is why the decision to showcase contemporary Mindanao art came as a form of celebration of the artistic culture in the vibrant art scene of the region. “Beneath” was on view recently at Galerie Francesca’s new space in SM Megamall.
Kublai’s drive to perfect his art and establish his style are but the first steps. The real journey started when he opened his heart to beat in joy for the simple things and started mentoring aspiring artists to find the same rhythm.
The purest form of art is in the smiles that beam out from the faces of the elderly men and women who have been through all the strife of life, and those of the children who have yet to experience the world away from their mothers’ protective arms. It is in that invitation to partake of freshly harvested sea urchins by fishermen celebrating their day’s catch no matter how meager. It is in the smell that wafts as the first raindrops fall on parched land.
Art is in the despair etched on a farmer’s brows as yet another harvest is devastated by flood or drought. It is in his darkened skin and the soil beneath his nails. It is in the naturally toned muscles of indigenous people who trek up and down their mountain homes without breaking a sweat. Art is in the eyes that behold the burst of colors a sunrise breaks out in, the same eyes that see the beauty in gray dawns. Art is in where we are and what’s within.
This is what “Fifty Summit” is all about. From the vantage point of seeing as far and wide as one is allowed to see, Kublai basks in the beauty of small things, the love that emanates from spontaneous moments, the spark of joy a sunrise brings, and the melancholia from a sun’s last ray, the flutter in one’s heart as a dragonfly flits around a gurgling brook, and experience bliss in stillness and silence.
Art becomes more awesome in that journey after a tumultuous and punishing rush to the summit.
“Fifty Summits” runs until today at Art Lounge Manila in The Podium.
For more information about Art Lounge Manila, visit www.artloungemanila.com. You may also check their social media pages, FB/IG/YT: @artloungemanila, for more details. For collectible, functional and wearable art, shop at www.gfemporium.com
