Design Ubec: Why it should be a Cebuanos pride

CEBU, Philippines - As the summer of 2013 gently closes with riveting memories of powdery white sand beach and sunkissed ladies flooding your Facebook news feed, a celebrated month-long event also concludes at Handuraw, an apt venue for designers to gather and showcase their works for this year’s DesignUbec.

DesignUbec is the brainchild of graphic designer Edzel Rubite, also known as Skinny. What was a curious visit to galleries like Ronac and The Collective, and to last year’s Graphika Manila, the largest annual graphic and multimedia design event in the Philippines, led to the idea of starting a design exhibit in Cebu, something that our beloved hometown needs more of.

So he tapped his designer friends to promote Cebuano art, specifically in the field of graphic design. “To unite the Cebuano graphic designers and push forward the craft and hopefully make Cebu a Mecca of graphic design,” Edzel said of the main purpose of DesignUbec.

The first ever DesignUbec was held last October 27, 2012. Feeling the need to gather more designers, Edzel and his team came up with another round of sheer talent and visually arresting masterpieces. This time, it opened on May 4 and ran for the whole month, featuring twenty-four designers, with three based outside Cebu and one coming all the way from Malaysia. The participants are a mix of fine arts students, self-taught designers, and full-time graphic designers.

Nicebleed was one of the prominent names that participated in the exhibit. Francis Miñoza, a local talent, has gained online popularity through his often mind-boggling and sometimes simply awe-inspiring works, some of which he shared with his equally talented brother, Laurence Miñoza. The Miñoza brothers are well-known for t-shirt designs; you may know them from their works for Threadless and Design By Humans.

While he undoubtedly takes pride of his Cebuano roots, Francis has a rather refreshing outlook on what it’s like to be an artist and what he feels about those who practice the same craft. “I think the first thing an artist will notice about his fellow artist is the style and the ideas or the way he creates things. I don’t really think that being a Cebuano has to do with being a good or a bad artist. The world is one and that’s because we are equal and all part of it.”

For another DesignUbec artist, Ismael “Maeng” Sandiego better known as TenTimesKarma, the style of our local artists is diverse. “It is strongly Western-inspired, yes, but local artists are slowly starting to incorporate their own flair and put in bits and pieces of Filipino influences in their works.”

The art scene in Cebu has evidently evolved adroitly. And while practitioners of traditional arts often find themselves in heated debates with supporters of digital design, arguing on which should be considered true art, I say it doesn’t really matter. Both speak of in-depth interpretation of the soul and both will always enchant us with their ability to attempt to define fantasy and reality.

Digital design is a product of technology and it has definitely become an ideal platform for designers. Online competitions and even career opportunities were unheard of before. Artists and designers are surely more fortunate today, with better and easier ways to get exposure.

“Internet is there and very accessible. There are so many ways you can use or opportunities you can take advantage of,” said Francis, who showcases his works at Cargocollective, Behance.net, Deviant Art.com, and Society6.com.

“Artists should continue to make the most of the World Wide Web since this is the easiest way—and the cheapest way—to get your works out there for people to see,” Maeng shared. He himself feels that he owes a lot to the internet, actively joining and succeeding in online competitions. He’s not so bad at exhibits either; his apparent skill that shines throughout different shows often got him some commissioned work, locally and internationally.

For Francis and Maeng, events such as DesignUbec help expose new talents and local artists to not only showcase their works but to also enhance and develop their individual style through the inspiration they got from other artists’ works. For the rest of the society, it’s a chance to be exposed and learn more about art and appreciate it firsthand.

Clearly, Cebu has continued to be a nest overflowing with talents. A good number of digital designers have earned recognition through international competitions. What needs to be done though is to expose these talents more by continuing to support and encourage local artists, whether traditional or digital.

When asked if Cebu can expect more of DesignUbec in the future, Edzel was quick to quip about DesignUbec 2013 2.0. And we all know too well that anything with 2.0 will definitely be better and bigger!  (FREEMAN)