Rizal-themed art on display at the UP campus oval

The lovely tree-lined path along the University of the Philippines academic oval serves as an outdoor gallery for an exhibit celebrating our National Hero's sesquicentennial anniversary. The lane reserved for bikers, joggers, and pedestrians is the perfect space for reflecting on the banners featuring Rizal-themed artwork. Among the usual university posters along the oval are banners featuring selected pieces from the "Relevant Rizal?" exhibit - the third annual installment of the Looking for Juan Outdoor Banner Project of the Center for Art, New Ventures & Sustainable Development (CANVAS). The exhibit was launched on June 3 at the UP Vargas Museum. It features dozens of artists contemplating on the 150th birthday of national hero Jose Rizal, which is being celebrated all over the country this year. "We have again invited dozens of our country's best artists to reflect and express their thoughts on the question of what it means to be Filipino, focusing this year on Jose Rizal. As we commemorate the 150th birthday of our National Hero, we invite you to join us - as you walk, bike or drive around this magnificent tree-lined Oval of the University of the People - as we contemplate and reflect on what his life, words and sacrifice mean to all of us, as Filipinos," says CANVAS. CANVAS organizes creative activities and events that are designed to explore the use of art to drive debate and discussion on selected social issues. The original works are on display at the UP Vargas Museum until June 10. Afterwards, they will be transferred to the Bencab Museum in Baguio city, where a parallel banner exhibit will be held starting June 1. The banner reproductions around the UP oval are on display until the end of June. Curated versions of the banner exhibit will also run in three Ayala Underpasses starting June 10. Art for all The works range from classic to contemporary, from artists like Bencab to Garapata. “It would take at least two hours to look at everything," my friend told me. This is true, especially if one were to absorb each piece. The exhibit of original artworks, which take up the entire ground floor of Vargas museum, is the kind where you can find all sorts of people enjoying the pieces -- from little kids to grandmothers. Even people who claim to know nothing about art can find something they like among the 67 works on display. After all, the messages are clear, despite the volume and variety of pieces, much like Rizal's own jack-of-all-trades genius. Some titles are self-explanatory: Oftalmologo by Ramel Villas, Mi Ulitimo Adios by Mark Arcamo, Narcisa by Daniel dela Cruz, and Gamu-gamo by Rex Tatlonghari. Others have easily recognizable elements like the Noli Me Tangere, the Philippine peso, Rizal monuments and street signs, and Avenida Rizal. Many of the pieces promote Rizal and encourage the viewer to emulate him. "May Heroes continue to be born amongst us and do our country proud," reads the notes for Dante Lerma's Proudly Philippine Made. Plet Bolipata's Princess Shawarma of broken tiles, glass stones, cement, and wire is explained this way: "During his exile in Dapitan, he collected and sent specimens of natural life, including one seahorse, to museums abroad for identification. The seahorse is the only species on earth in which the male bears the unborn young. Jose Rizal is the sole embodiment of the Filipino soul that carries the dreams of our nation's young." Some pieces are more personal than others, like Inspiration of Jomike Tejido. “This abstract piece represents how Rizal has inspired me to live multiple roles in a society, to live a full life and make a difference. The rough geometric blue hues show how he, a pacifist, was able to live those roles in his time," he says. But others have a slightly different reflection for the hero's sequicentennial. "We should stop depending on dead heroes. Because no matter how great they had been, they would always remain dead and unable to intervene with our daily struggles and afflictions in life. Hence the title, if translated literally, denotes that a sun can never burn after its own death. Same with Rizal, who is just a human being as we are, blood and bone, flesh and existence, which is subject to decay after death. “So maybe some people should stop idolizing him too much, because it would make them no different from overzealous church worshipers who sometimes fail to see their own selves. Yes, we can use him as an amplifier of our confidence, but not as a primary source of it. Because things will only start to happen the moment we begin to believe in ourselves," reads the notes for Dead Stars Don't Burn. Other pieces in the exhibit target the youth in particular, like Aldy Aguirre's Ang Kabataan ay ang Pagasa ng Bayan, which is named after Rizal's famous line. For it to be fulfilled, “young, modern heroes are faced with civilized oppressors, good-looking monsters hiding in the bushes of a morally-decaying society, ready for the kill. For his, and his fellow-heroes’ legacy to live on, prose and verses, ink and paper with convictions as sharp as Rizal’s mind and as pure as a real hero’s heart might keep oneself from drowning in the pits of a modern-day slavery." Liza Flores' Hati is a tribute to Rizal's "The Monkey and the Turtle." But the colorful piece is not just for children. "We all know the story -- this one and more -- but often forget the lessons," the viewer is reminded. The banner exhibit around the academic oval allows viewers to encounter the artworks within their daily routine, whether they are simply going from one class to another, or running to get fit, or hanging out with friends at the Sunken Garden. The works speak subtly from their conspicuous yet unobtrusive placement along the oval, their messages ripe for the picking. Instead of simply being archived after the exhibition, the banners will be recycled into tote bags that will serve as one-of-a-kind pieces of functional art. The bags will then be sold to benefit selected charities, as well as other CANVAS efforts to promote greater awareness and appreciation for Philippine art, culture and the environment. – YA, GMA News The exhibit may be viewed online at lookingforjuan.com. All photos courtesy of Looking For Juan website.