CCP's 13 Artists present what's ahead: At tension

The main gallery of the CCP was is quite a state of dishabille, literally with piles of laundry dumped on the floor or hanging from a wire, rusty corrugated metal sheets being hammered onto pieces of wood, and large black garbage bag covering something boat-shaped, one of Patty Eustaquio’s meticulously crafted and unconventional sculptures. Oh, hold on, that is part of the sculpture.

The 13 Artists to be honored by CCP have been setting up their exhibits for the awarding and show on July 9, under the theme of “Brave New Works.” Buen Calubayan describes his bakal structure as a representation of the hierarchy of society. “Kill you by means of natural selection,” as the work is called, will place aesthetic and ethical judgment in the hands of the viewer, who can choose to feed or not feed a live rat (unless you’re aiming for socially realistic eau de dead rat, I hope you do feed it).

Pamela Yan-Santos’ “Living Room” installation explores the meaning of the phrase for her, as she never had such a traditionally defined space, the living room always being an extension, or perhaps after thought, of a studio, a work space, or junk yard. A jigsaw puzzle set on the coffee table visually echoes the slices-of-life wall collage.

Inky, turbulent clouds float through a 360-degree drawing by Christina Dy, known for her large-scale charcoals of flowing subjects like hair and the ocean. “It’s called ‘Ground Zero’ because there would be no artwork without the viewer,” she says. Dy wanted to recreate the sense of immersion she felt when she went up on a helipad and photographed the billowing vista, which she transferred onto 150 sheets of paper.

At the press con, a disgruntled older member from the media charged the artists, who are all fresh-faced and below 40, with the impression that they were merely “playing.” Dy succinctly answered, “We are!” She and the others explained that making art was hard work too, but their work is driven by creativity and always infused with a sense of playfulness. We, as consumers and collectors and critics of art, hope they never lose that.

The other artists who will be exhibiting new work and breaking any long-held prejudices on what art is and what artists should be like are Cannes darling Raya Martin, who created a video installation, Racquel de Loyola of the dirty laundry, Don Dalmacio, Iggy Rodriguez, Kawayan de Guia, Winner Jumalon, Don M. Salubayba, Jaypee Samson, and MM Yu.

Being recognized by this triennial program of the CCP is about potential, and the promise to keep being innovative. The work they create should pull at the different tensions between person and society, the system, history and culture, and should present bold new perspectives. In that way, the award is less of a reward, more of a challenge. “The award is for work that is yet to be done,” Eileen Legaspi-Ramirez, one of the three judges, says. “Something that lies ahead of the awardees’ current practice rather than something they have definitively accomplished.”