Two Saturdays in One

Manix Abrera - the genius behind Kiko Machine Komix

exhibitors in THE Clothing

The official poster for the festival

Me with MALL's works :)

Me and @RosyBleu

Me with some artworks at Pen Pen's

Last Saturday (September 30, 2012), I attended the first Bloom Arts Festival in Cubao X. 70+ artists contributed their blood, sweat, and tears (figuratively, I hope). Artworks were displayed in selected shops and restaurants in Cubao's art haven. There were also special merchandise around for everyone, Bookay-Ukay, Designers of Asia, Moonleaf and others set up booths to sell their products. Some artists were also selling prints of their artworks, some were giving away stickers. A raffle promo was held during the event where lucky attendees won prints and artworks from some artists who exhibited their work. I got to meet artists whose works serve as an inspiration for me, like Tokwa Peñaflorida and Manix Abrera. I got to tell them how much of a fan I am. Haha! I love doing that - fangirling. I feel when someone has a positive effect on you, you have to tell them to pass on the good vibes all around. Quoting what a newspaper article said about the event, "art blooms all over Cubao X." It was a great event for artists and art enthusiasts. I felt great about the art scene here, it just goes to show that we have a ton of talented artists here in our country. I hope art will bloom even more 'cause I've always believed that art can make our country, if not the world, a better place. I hope they make it an annual event so that more artists can be showcased and the art scene here in the Philippines can grow into a big beautiful garden!

The awesome stage setup

The view from our seats!

Last night (October 6, 2012) was the first ever concert I attended in Araneta Coliseum! And it couldn't be better to have Foster the People be the first band that I watch live in that arena. I can't remember the name of the opening act but they sure got me pumped up for Mark Foster's wild dancing, beautiful singing, and his band mates' wonderful playing. The first song they played was Miss You. I can't get over Mark's electrified dancing while playing the piano, it's like some wild spirit has taken over his body. I love it. I keep looking back on that moment because I really felt his passion for what he's doing. FOSTER THE PEOPLE IS SO MUCH BETTER LIVE. The songs come alive with more personality than the recordings. And you have to see the band dance! They are truly passionate and you have to watch them live to see and feel that. During that concert, I released the stress I was feeling regarding school, and my insecurities. I head banged, jumped, danced, and sang my way out of those negative feelings and it worked!! Big thanks to Midas Promotions and Dayly Entertainment for bringing the band here in Manila, and especially to Foster the People for giving me an awesome first concert! And bigger thanks to God for the blessings, for being the motivation and for giving me the strength in finishing schoolwork so I can attend the concert. I CAN'T TELL YOU HOW AWESOME OUR GOD IS! You just have to experience that for yourself, and I pray that you will. :)

Beauty of risks

I'm about to take a risk regarding my final thesis by changing the main message of my study. Firstly, my study is about a book illustration for the poem, Some Women by Bunny Ty. The poem is about some women's vanity, hence the title. It contains lines about beautification practices of women and lines about underlying actions regarding those practices. The main focus of the study is the exploration of my chosen method which is collage.

Last Thursday, a friend and I went to Bates(an ad agency where I interned last summer), to get some tips and advice from the art directors and designers regarding our thesis. What I thought would be just a simple interview led to a profound realization that the message of the study I'm currently working on is not socially relevant. It may seem relevant for me, since it will benefit me as an artist, but it seems that it doesn't have any significance for our society. The art director I consulted with briefly read the overview of my study, and gave me the advice that I need: to think of a stronger message other than promoting the method of my choice.

Right now, I'm researching more into the market's perception of Filipina beauty. Some say it's our simplicity, others say it's our tanned skin, some would mention our caring personality. But then it all comes down to what would my interpretation be. After all, beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.
What is Filipina beauty for me, what is my idea of beauty, what is it that I want to convey in my illustrations? I need to answer these questions as soon as I can so that I can move forward with my study. All I can do now is to look for inspiration, to gather the right information, and to hope that this risk I'm about to take will be worth it in the end.

A question to ponder: what is your idea of (Filipina) beauty?