Fund arts

It’s 50 years for the UP Cebu Fine Arts program, and what a proud milestone this institution has reached. With plenty of creative alumni bringing honor and prestige to their alma mater, there is likewise a plenitude of reasons to pat the backs of the professors and instructors who shepherded the early stages of their wards’ formative years.

And yet, like pretty much any other institution seeking relevance, challenges rear their ugly heads. And this university is no exception.

In Cebu, the arts track for eager students just got dimmer and narrower, with the other universities shuttering their studio arts (or other functional equivalents) program. Pretty much, an avid student of the arts in Cebu only has the state university to look to. That, or ship out and enroll in another island.

But picking UP Cebu as one’s campus of choice is problematic in itself because UP itself is financially strapped. There’s bureaucracy to navigate, funding comes in trickles, and the local faculty confides that the decision makers in Manila aren’t that focused on the Visayas campus. I’m being kind here, considering I’ve so very recently ripped into the dismal situation in the Diliman facilities of the Fine Arts program. I’m still waiting and watching for the remediation of the ugly mess that’s in their own backyard.

The constant croaking of “no funding” looks like it has no end in sight, and it has become clear to the local stakeholders that their dependency on the government, or the powers-that-be in Manila, is non-sustainable. Hence, the natural recourse is the “let’s help ourselves” solution.

This rainy Friday night, a chilly evening beset by the usual heavy traffic, saw the inaugural fundraising event of the newly-birthed UP Cebu Fine Arts Alumni Association. Artists pitched in with free artworks, patrons showed up with their wallets, and dinner was served. In attendance were art lovers and collectors, artists, and faculty, all the singular individuals who made time to demonstrate that art is high up in their life agenda.

Khriss Bajade, newly elected president of the infant alumni association, opened the event with a heartfelt and sincere speech. This organization knew to choose their leader, obviously, because Khriss managed to inspire the attendees with his messaging.

Perhaps, self-help will be the way of the future. In hindsight, it’s the same formula already enjoyed by the colleges of Business Administration, Law, and Economics. Their alumni band together and jostle each other to be first in line to renovate classrooms and donate equipment, as they seek to give back. Their respective deans just point them to the right direction, and marginal improvements come in, compound, multiply, and ultimately combine to house the most formidable of learning institutions.

If this alumni association keeps on with its altruistic vision, there is much promise in store for the current and future enrollees of the Cebu arts program. Once this small coalition of art lovers gets past critical mass, Cebu could be a powerhouse in the arts. With so much talent brimming in this hotspot, this could become the latest art destination of the country, following Bacolod and, it seems more likely to be the case, Iloilo.

Just take a look at the national giants like Orly Ypon and Romulo Galicano, whom locals can boast of as townmates. Mark Copino, Bastinuod, Wyndelle Remonde, and Lean Reboja already have steady gallery presence at Manila’s snobbish gallery scene, while the national arts competitions like Shell and Metrobank are littered with Cebu winners.

The local art fairs like VAF, Tops, and Tubo have attracted the attention of the art world players. And Atua Midtown! That newly created art hub is a dream come true for the creatives, and needs only sustained interest to survive.

The ingredients are here. What’s needed is the right Petri dish. With what was evident in the tiny shindig cooked up by Khriss and team, the art smorgasbord might just be within reach.