The value of a clear eye

Monday, October 18, 2010

A STREAM of continuous consciousness flows during his art making process. He is basically a figurative artist, and a realist artist by nature. His art revolves around the objective and representational narratives of Filipino genre painting. The latter is like freezing a moment and slices of life in a canvas.

He also does landscapes, still life and does on-the-spot paintings in places around Cebu.

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He paints people (e.g. portraits) especially if he feels something in their character that would provide with something emotional that he can freely express and interpret in his work.

This “he” is Adeste Deguilmo. He recently concluded his solo exhibit, “Calms, Joys and Harvest,” which was held in Artasia Gellery in SM Mega Mall, Metro Manila.

Deguilmo looks for subjects that would express his ideas and philosophy. His paintings exhibit strong composition (how objects are arranged in an artwork). He uses a creative device and formula that he calls value pattern design (VPD).

The VPD methodology is an exploration of enduring consciousness. It is a deliberate way to achieve balance and harmony. It is also a transformational process from the initial rough sketches and pattern showing how it transforms into a finished painting.

Those rough thumbnail sketches may be spontaneously conceived but as soon as the painting process starts, the whole act becomes a conscious attempt at serious painting.

Through all these years as a professional artist he still believes that creativity is the act of learning all the time. It’s never-ending and it sharpens the creative capabilities of a painter. There are two ways the VPD process can be implemented.

First, he usually approaches a painting with a concept in his mind. They appear as abstractions that later attain figurative form as soon as the right reference material is selected.

Deguilmo sketches or makes studies of the concept on paper, oftentimes in multiples.

After he is satisfied with his initial drawing using VPD, he takes photos of the subject and model suited to his concept complete with background and props. He makes initial strokes using the photographs, and then starts painting.

This way of painting manifests the potent ideas, harvested from the artist’s mind. And because the ideas are conceptual imageries they are fresh, original and raw needing to be processed.

By employing VPD, figures from reference materials are transposed on canvas. The first impression based on the study he made is always retained on the completed painting.

Overall, the method preserves a lasting impression and feel until the final outcome.

He wants the emotions retained.

The second is a kind of reverse from the first approach. It utilizes ideas from the outside. He derives his ideas from an outside source, mainly existing photographic references. If he has all the photo materials at hand and he wants to make a painting out of these references, he then would make a study and draw them on paper concentrating on the VPD process.

When he’s satisfied with the result of the multiple studies he makes oftentimes from a choice of three thumbnail sketches.

He transfers it on canvas, the drawing that is already exact according to his desire.

There is a deliberate and predetermined condition from conception to completion. A little reminder should be kept in everyone’s mind that color in a painting should be controlled by values (e.g. color tones, intensity), and value is controlled by line.

A painting, no matter what the subject, is should be controlled by design in values, color and line. He has heard before that even if your color is not that good, as long as your value is right it will still be a good painting.

Deguilmo always see to it that there is something interesting in his value pattern design. He never paints a subject that doesn’t interest him.

Art is a personal conviction just like faith and many other things we hold dear in life. VPD he believes is an ideal approach that a figurative artist like him can contribute as his personal contribution of techniques to the vast field of knowledge that is visual art.