Impy Pilapil in 'Bloom'

MANILA, Philippines - Impy Pilapil relates that she grew up incessantly wondering about many things around her  from the flowers and pebbles she played with, the food she ate, the birds and insects in the garden, and how the day becomes night after so many hours. She was filled with wonder with whatever she saw and touched and many questions would always go on and on in her head. According to the artist:

“As a child, I was running around my grandparents’ house all the time and it had a large yard surrounded by lush trees, flowers and homegrown vegetables. My grandfather was a green thumb and with him, I witnessed all of them grow  from seeds to plants to flowers and the times they bore fruits or vegetables. I believe my grandmother and mother also nurtured my childhood with a lot of cooking in the kitchen where even the simplest food was always delicious. I saw that the way they prepared them expressed their love for the family and our meals were always joyful.”

She continues, “Sunshine was a natural part of life and it was always a welcome treat to actively play in its glow with neighborhood kids every day. Things have changed now and I believe that due to the present onslaught of computers, a lot of kids miss the sun which is the best natural vitamin D they need  and it is for free.”

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She says that although her curiosity about her environment was intense, when she had chemistry in secondary school, she had no interest in it other than to get passing grades. But things changed when, while studying Anthroposophy, she encountered Dr. Rudolf Hauschka and studied The Nature of Substance, Spirit and Matter with a group that included doctors. This impacted her now upbeat view about chemistry including the evolution of her art.

“I feel reborn with a new perspective  one of deeper love and respect for everything that manifests into physical form, including the etheric and heavenly. As I continue to educate myself, I am discovering new creative capabilities and I am challenged everyday to pursue new media and forms.”

The “Bloom” exhibit is a significant effect of Impy’s fascination with the chemistry of life and “the marvelous rhythm of being and appearance  of blossoming and germinating, expanding and contracting that is the primal phenomenon of physical and spiritual metamorphosis.”

“Stone Spirit” by Impy Pilapil

Through representations of these dynamics of “being,” one understands how an artist reaches this level of elegant, peaceful and meaningful aesthetic from a creative process that comes from long periods of reflection. 

“Silence and space are always vital for me to prepare and develop the inner sanctuary that would be home to authentic ideas  which eventually give birth to my new artworks. This enables me to achieve what I believe is my duty as an artist: to exhibit works that are fresh and from the heart.”

When a group of children with their mentors from Museo Pambata arrive at Galleria Duemila, Impy accompanies the children for a tour of the artworks in the two galleries and answers all their questions. In turn, they also verbally express what they saw and felt for all the pieces on the wall including the freestanding ones on the floor. Then the children disperse to sketch their favorite pieces.

“Their reaction is always a big thrill for me and somehow I feel that they can carry and resurrect the images and feelings they had for the artworks at anytime and anywhere in the future,” says the artist. “I always hope that they can remember them for a long time and that they will be memories that are soothing to the senses.”

Impy concludes, “To see their enthusiasm and recognize that I have touched their senses one way or the other is priceless.”

Impy Pilapil’s “Bloom” exhibit is on view until Sept. 30 at Galleria Duemila. Galleria Duemila is at 210 Loring St., 1300 Pasay City. For information, call 831-9990, fax 833-9815, or visit duemila@mydestiny.net.