‘The Mysterious Travelling Carnival’ at Galerie Stephanie
MANILA, Philippines - For its first exhibit of the new year, Galerie Stephanie attempts to capture the magic of a carnival in an exhibition featuring Francis Nacion, Carlo Ongchangco, Anthony Palo, and Gilbert Semillano, artists who are known for their carnival sense of macabre delights. Also participating in the exhibition are Vincent de Pio, Camille Ver, Caress Banson and emerging artist Kara Villaseran.
Carlo Ongchangco uses the classic stories of the likes of Western literature and combines them with a chibi-fied aesthetic influenced by Japanese manga as a jumping point for his lively paintings. He manages to maintain a consistently unique style in fascinating character portraits that reflect upon the kinds of characters that one encounters in a carnival.
Anthony Palo’s contributions draw upon the power of the festivities of a carnival. Palo focuses on individual portraits — a great example being “Ringleader,” for its softer rendering of a whimsical carnival performer in the middle of his performance.
Francis Nacion depicts jugglers and other entertainers of a carnival. Nacion’s aesthetic conceit is to use recurring patterns to balance the canvas, giving his current oeuvre the visual look of an illustrated children’s book. This is evident in “Performer III,” where flat patterns shimmer on the performer’s costume.
Gilbert Semillano focuses on the mythical and surreal aspects of a carnival. A top artist in the Middle East, Gilbert Semillano creates fantastical worlds and landscapes that truly echo the magic of a carnival.
A great new way to find inspiration in the year new is a trip to the carnival. Galerie Stephanie’s “The Mysterious Travelling Carnival” is a way for the art-lover to bring home a piece of that magic.
“The Mysterious Travelling Carnival” opens on Jan. 15, and is on view until Jan. 26 at Galerie Stephanie, Parc Plaza Building, 183 E. Rodriguez Jr. Avenue (C-5), Libis, Quezon City. For information, call 709-1488 or email inquiry.galeriestephanie@gmail.com.
