While art can be about self expression, it can also be a way for the artist to be introspective and reflect on their own culture and beliefs.
This was the common thread I felt from two different art events the past week. While one event, Tes Surs Treasures was about the tribal past of Mindanao and the people’s struggle for identity, the other event, the Spanish Film Festival, looks into the nuances of Spanish culture and how it identifies itself from global culture.
Tres Surs Treasures
Mindanao artists Ibn’Saud Salip Yasin Ahmad, Joel Goelamen and Rameer Tawasil will showcase their painting collection at the Marco Polo Hotel lobby from August 15 to 31. The exhibit features works that show the artists take on the culture of the indigenous people of Mindanao and their land.
Marco Polo General Manager Collin Healy shared that the exhibit is just one of the many activities the hotel has lined up for the long Kadayawan Festival “We are proud to be partners of this exhibit to show a different side of Mindanao through art.”
Spanish Film Fest
From August 20 to 23, Instituto Cervantes, the Embassy of Spain and the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) present “Contemporáneos”, a film cycle featuring four contemporary Spanish films. The screenings will take place at the FDCP Cinemathéque in Davao City during those dates at 6PM.
Dir. Javier Galvan of the Instituto Cervantes shared that the film festival is an opportunity to promote Spanish culture outside of Mindanao. You can still catch the closing film today with the drama ‘No sé decir adiós,’ by Lino Escalera. A story about a girl named Clara who receives a call from her father, with whom she has not spoken for a long time. He is suffering from a terminal illness, which Clara refuses to accept. Against everyone’s advice, she takes her father to be treated, both of them escaping the reality which neither can accept.
