By Jasmine Agnes T. Cruz
WHO IS THE FATHER of Philippine conceptual art? What do Filipino artist studios look like? What was Philippine art like right after World War II? Three recently books on Philippine art answer just those questions, and more.
ROBERTO CHABET
Artist Ringo Bunoan edited this book on her mentor, Roberto Chabet, the “father of Philippine conceptual art.” It is a book of essays on the influential teacher, written by Filipino artists and curators Ronald Achacoso, Lena Cobangbang, Cocoy Lumbao, Jonathan Olazo, Carina Evangelista, Eileen Legaspi-Ramirez, Ma. Victoria Herrera, and Ms. Bunoan, Its foreword was written by Benjamin Bautista. The text is accompanied by hundreds of images of artworks, exhibitions, and gatherings of artists, many of which are published for the first time.
Roberto Chabet (1937–2013) had a great influence on many of the young artists of today. A teacher at the University of The Philippines from 1970 to 2002, Mr. Chabet taught generations of artists and curated a number of exhibitions with his students. Known for his use of ready-mades, found objects, and everyday materials, Mr. Chabet ushered in conceptual art, where art is more valued for the idea behind it than other traditional aesthetic concerns. As the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ founding museum director starting in 1968, Mr. Chabet established the 13 Artists Awards which recognizes young artists who take risks.
The seed of the idea for the book was planted when Ms. Bunoan was doing archival work for Asia Art Archive, where she was tasked to gather documents about Mr. Chabet. She realized that there was so much information about her late mentor but that this was all scattered. Then, when she and other artists mentored by Mr. Chabet organized the year-long “Chabet: 50 Years” retrospective, they were able to reconstruct several early Chabet installations that had no documentation. Mr. Chabet was still alive at that point and was able to oversee the work. Several photograph of the recreated installations are included in the book.
It was Mr. Chabet himself who suggested a photograph of his China collage piece be used for the book’s cover. Ms. Bunoan said that it was one of his most important works, and the idea of that artwork matches that of the book, which is itself like a collage with its collection of images and essays written by different people. Ms. Bunoan hopes that the book provides a multidimensional portrayal of Mr. Chabet.
The book, which costs P6,000, is available at MO_Space in Bonifacio High Street (856-7915, 856-2748 ext. 2, mospaceph@gmail.com, www.mo-space.net), and at the store artbooks.ph, which is located at 123 Pioneer St., Mandaluyong City (632-7683, info@artbooks.ph, www.artbooks.ph). The book is also available at Japan’s Mori Art Museum, Singapore’s National Art Gallery, and Hong Kong’s Osage Gallery.
ART AFTER WAR
Art After War: 1948-1969 is the first book of new publisher The Modern Reader. Founded in 2014 by art collector Olivia Yao, The Modern Reader seeks to publish coffee table books on lifestyle, culture, and the arts. Art After War: 1948-1969 is the first of a series of books called “Philippine Artscape” which will cover different periods of Philippine art history.
Written by Patrick D. Flores, the curator for the Philippine Pavilion in the 56th Venice Biennale, Art after War covers the period after World War II until the 1960s. With over 200 images, the book includes the works of over 50 Filipino artists, from Vicente Manansala to Lee Aguinaldo. There are also essays about the Art Association of the Philippines (AAP), the “13 Moderns,” and the Philippine Art Gallery in Manila.
Aside from traditional art, the book also tackles comics, architecture, performance art pieces, poems, and films of the period. Mr. Flores felt that these also shaped art history, said Ms. Yao.
The book’s design is by Felix Mago Miguel and photographs are by At Maculangan.
After 22 years in banking, she wanted to do something different, said Ms. Yao. As a collector, she saw that there aren’t enough books on art, and she chose the Post War period as the subject of The Modern Reader’s first book basically because she herself was interested to learn about this period. The interests of the market will dictate which art eras with be tackled by the following books, said Ms. Yao. The next book has no release date yet as she said that what is more important is creating a good book. “People don’t mind waiting for a good product,” she said.
Aside from the local market, orders have been placed for the book from Canada, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, said Ms. Yao. She surmises that it is because there is a growing interest in Southeast Asian art, and that Filipinos abroad feel connected to their hometown when they read books on our culture. “The art scene is very dynamic,” said Ms. Yao.
The book costs P5,500 and it is available at Fully Booked, the Tin-aw Art Gallery, Finale Art File, West Gallery, and artbooks.ph. For details, visit themodernreader.com.
FILIPINO ARTISTS IN THEIR STUDIOS
Where Filipino artists make their art is the subject of a coffee table book published by Manila Bulletin. Spearheaded by photojournalist José Vinluan Zulueta, Filipino Artists in their Studios features 75 artists including Napoleon Abueva, Federico Aguilar Alcuaz, Benedicto “BenCab” Cabrera, Abdulmari Asia Imao, Arturo Luz, Roberto Chabet, Mideo Cruz, Geraldine Javier, Mark Justiniani, David Medalla, Manuel Ocampo, José Tence Ruiz, José Santos III, Mauro Malang Santos, Rodel Tapaya, Ronald Ventura, and Betsy Westendorp.
The idea for the book came to Mr. Zulueta in 2010. As the newspaper’s photographer for the arts, he was often assigned to visit artist studios and photograph them. “When you are immersed in the art scene, you’re the only one who gets to see those studios,” he said, in mixed English and Filipino. “It was really interesting to see how they worked and to see what materials they used. They each had a different character.”
An artist himself (he has had several exhibits in the Philippines and Australia), Mr. Zulueta said that as much as possible he captures the way things are and doesn’t ask the artists to fix the studio. Some artist might be offended if one requests some tidying up, and also the space will lose its character if it is cleaned up, he said.
Initially, Mr. Zulueta’s photos would appear in the newspaper accompanying an article. Later, he realized that these could be compiled and turned into a book. Since these assignments were done on a weekly basis, Mr. Zulueta was able to photograph around 300 artists. He has enough material for a second book, and he hopes to release that in November.
The book is available at National Book Store and Fully Booked for P3,990.
