Seeing double

MANILA, Philippines - Young artists and photographers in the country need a break, need a nudge, a springboard for getting into the industry or at least get a taste of it.” This is what graphic designer Mikki dela Rea says when asked why he and his friends thought of putting this exhibit together. “The talent in today’s youth is so rampant yet they’re still overlooked.”

“20/20” is a fitting name for the exhibit as it involves 20 photographers and 20 artists working together to create collaborative pieces. The idea of pairing up artists with photographers came from Gabby Cantero, well known for starting a monthly portrait-taking session called Daylight. It was in the course of one of these sessions in April that Gabby suggested the idea to Mikki and events photographer Aliver Cedillo. As a result, they gathered 40 of the best up-and-coming artists they knew, partnering a photographer with an artist that had a complementary style. This must have been a difficult task since the artists and photographers on the roster have very different styles and materials. They’re into vectoring, black and white photography, watercolors, portraiture, cut and paste, pen and ink, graffiti, street art, all kinds of media.

The idea intrigued young artists and it wasn’t a surprise when almost all the people on Gabby, Al and Mikki’s list responded positively to their invite. Artists Paulina Ortega, KO Diestro, Nina Garcia, Kristine Caguiat, Sisa Lleses, Mikki dela Rea, Nikkie Po, Isabel Afable, Rob Cham, Joshua Yup, CJ San Jose, Katrina Teh, Mano Lotho, Otto Ferraren, Arthur Tavera, Gigi Lapid, Camy Francisco, Vincent Africa, Aeon Barrameda and Eman Garcia are working respectively with photographers Gabby Cantero, Aliver Cedillo, Tim Serrano, Bia Catbagan, Justine Espinueva, Kamille del Rosario, Patrick Jamora, Julius Valledor, Patty Mendoza, Miki Giles, An and En Estrada, Regine David, Sam Dalrymple, Sarah Javier, Idris Vicuña, Joseph Pascual, Martin Sitoy, Joey Alvero, Jonathan Tolentino and Kaity Chua. This will surely be a celebration of fresh minds.

Creative freedom or “likhalayaan” (a word the organizers coined to shorten the words likha and kalayaan) is the overall theme of “20/20.” This of course means there is no theme to follow. With no rules and some of the partners being strangers to each other’s work, it’ll be exciting to see what they come up with. Their views may be contrasting but when put together, their vision might just be 20/20. “A showcase of their talent for everyone to see. Times have changed, this is how this generation gets their much-needed attention.”

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“20/20” starts at 20:20hrs on Saturday, June 19 at The Outerspace Gallery, The Collective (7274 Malugay St. Makati City).