UST artists at Museo Iloilo

Dog-god, a traveling art exhibit by the Young Thomasians Artists Circle (YTAC), formally opened to the public last week  at the Museo Iloilo.

The exhibit, featuring the works of UST College of Fine Arts alumni, is part of an effort by the University of Sto. Tomas to expand its ‘public presence’ in preparation for its quadricentennial anniversary. UST, the oldest university in the country and Far East Asia, will turn 400 in 2011, said Dr. Nina Cabral, Director of the UST Public and Alumni Affairs Office. Cabral said the exhibit will travel to different parts of the country and even overseas as part of its effort to also touch base with its alumni. Cabral is meeting with UST graduates here in Iloilo and hopes that a UST Alumni Association can be formed here.

The exhibit was first launched at the UST Museum and the Cultural Center of the Philippines early this year. The exhibit at Museo Iloilo, which will run until the end of October, is the first outside Manila. Jocelyn Dare Tullao, assistant curator of the UST Museum, credits the Museo Iloilo for bringing the works here. “They (the Museo Iloilo) were the first to respond to our invitation,” she said.

The exhibit is also slated to run in Cebu, Baguio, Davao, Korea and Singapore over the next several months until next year.

Tullao said the exhibit features the works of nine UST alumni who were selected for their distinctive styles and award winning talent and creativity. “They were the cream of the crop,” she said.

All in their mid-to-late 20s, the artists are Andres Barrioquinto, Lindsey Lee, Wesley Valenzuela, C.J. Tañedo, Lawrence Borsoto, Buen Calubayan, Jaime Jesus Pacena II, Ivan Roxas, and Mark Magistrado.

The works on display, done in various styles and media (oil pastel, ink or graphite on paper or canvass and mixed) dwell on “the sacred and the profane” and feature the respective artist’s depiction/interpretation of the exhibit’s anagrammatic handle, dog-god.

Said Tullao, “The title of the exhibit will leave the viewer pondering for substance. It is anagrammatic and doesn’t encompass a subjective connotation nor disgrace divinity, but rather calls to mind man’s continuous pursuit for meaning.”

Ms. Vita Sarenas, an art connoisseur and owner of the Finale Art Gallery in Makati and Mandaluyong, describes the YTAC group as “emerging artists” and their works as “a reflection of contemporary art.”

Already, several sets of small works, mostly pen and ink renditions by the artists – have been acquired by some Iloilo art lovers and collectors. (LSC)