The News Today Online

Ilonggo excels in the National Art Scene

Nelson Ayala, Rymer Gengoni
(awardee), Lucell Larawan(mentor)|
and Patria Ayala.

College students from 64 schools across the country submitted 1,277 entries in the recently concluded 38th Shell National Students Art Competition.

Rymer Gengoni from the Central Philippine University won as honorable mention with his sculpture 'The Unfortunate One'. He received a plaque, a medal and P5,000 cash during the awarding on October 24, 2005 at the SM Megamall, Manila.

Rendered in terra cotta medium, Rymer's sculpture depicts a child sitting despondently on a broken kite. This symbolically portrays how poverty causes a child's broken dreams.

In a national art contest like Shell's, one has to contend with the best fine arts schools, not to mention who won a major award in this category. He did not even have a fine arts course to attribute to this.

Rymer is a junior BS Software Engineering student who has been participating in local art contests. He was the first prize winner of the other year's painting contest (open category) sponsored by NEDA. He is an active member of Hebron Artists, a CPU-based art group founded by Asst. Prof. Lucelle Larawan.

Asst. Lucell Larawan, a faculty of the College of Commerce and Rymer's Art Mentor, is into painting, terra cotta and metal sculpture. Recently, he has finished a terra cotta portrait given as tribute to Nelson Ayala, a Distinguished Centralian Awardee.