In a Filipino society wherein, the name on an official paper often beats grassroots experience and expertise, the label of being a “Self-taught” artist or painter is a process of hard strokes—as if striving to be a good artist is not hard in and of itself—even a first-class education cannot guarantee for success and establishing yourself in the art world as it has a reputation for elitism, where connections is as important as talent. Which is really ironic (well, isn’t everything when it comes to people and life?), because the so-called art critics and art purists are basing their standards on works by classical artists who were mostly self-taught.
The artistic greats of the past were mostly like the Piguras artists when they started their lives as painters—Vincent Van Gogh, Paul Gauguin, Grandma Moses, Frida Kahlo, just to name a few—didn’t have the luxury to attend a prestigious art school; but what they lacked in funds and resources, they made up with their inner resources in the forms of discipline, consistency, and being their own worst critic. Although being an ideal art student, wherein, you just do art full time while being taught by a top master, and with all the materials at your fingertips is a dreamy thought, there are advantages to being self-taught. Most of all, you are not prone to the restrictions of your mentors—whom for sure have their own biases and preferences as people; and aside from having a freedom to learn as you please, you can also train yourself to be more creative and resourceful…you have more control to MAKE-BELIEVE.
In cooperation with Tabula Rasa Art Centrale, the Piguras Contemporary Figurative Art group opened their second exhibit at Felcris Centrale, now aptly titled: “Make-Believe”. This event is being held at Felcris Centrale from August 13 to 27, 2018.
“Our new show investigates the current situation of the local art scene, with only a handful of artists representing figurative art, we are proud of what we’ve gathered, and we’re set to raise the bar into what potential local artists can achieve in terms of producing art that could be at par with the rest of world. It is a collection of work that represents each artists’ reflection but still open-ended for the benefit of the viewers’ own perceptions. As the chairperson of the show, I would like to reiterate that, the very point of this show is to educate young artists, like me, that we can always learn the practice even outside the art schools,” Dominick Pilapil states.
Contemporary Realism has taken its first strides into becoming the ultimate relevant art movement of the 21st century; and Dominick gives his high regards to the fine art painter, Fred Ross for his unrelenting support of the revival of this particular practice. “Academic painting cannot be confined within the walls of the art schools anymore. It is very evident in the works of our very own Raymund Ric Bisnar, Kenneth Balighot, and of course, my father, Rene Pilapil—who was once mocked for being “self-taught”, Dom shares.
Every passing year shows the growing local talent and interest in the fine art technique as the group gains more arsenal and talented ammunitions for Piguras. The “Make-Believe” exhibit feature artworks by: Kenneth Balighot, Raymund Ric Bisnar, Egon Dali Bollozos, Rey Bollozos, Bryan Cabrera, Arvin Cantalejo, King Nelson Duyan, Clyde Laudato, Darwin Roy Pangaldin, Dominick Pilapil, Rene Pilapil, Mark Tolentino, Dominic Turno, and Kim Vale. This exhibition is driven by their collective vision to promote the idea that, figurative art entails not only talent, but also the desire and dedication to face the mammoth challenge of persistent practice and hard work to achieve the results that you see in their canvases today. Hopefully, Piguras can inspire the next generation of creatives to take the road less travelled—figuratively and literally.
