TWO guys who are recent graduates from the University of the Philippines are showing a flurry of activity in the art exhibition scene.
Partners Roniel Compra and Khriss "Bakh" Bajade are giving their art a wider exposure by doing a series of art shows. Both artists found themselves sharing studio space after college.
Compra and Bajade's recent exhibition was held at the SM Art Center. They called their combined work as "Contrast." It was a sequel to their first exhibit at the Canvas Bistro. This time the largervenue gave the artists the space to show their larger artworks. For those who love art, the two are the younger set or artists to watch.
They were indeed a contrast. Their works utilized different materials. But no matter what their medium is, they still shared a commonality because both were in a way practicing organic art.
It was a perfect meeting of the minds, in a perfect place, in a perfect time. Compra, even during his student days, was already known for using animal bones held together by rattan strips.
He creates contraptions using such materials over the ground or canvas surface that he paints on. In process Compra, is more direct than his partner.
Bajade processes his material the other way around. In his desire to create organic forms, he employs synthetic material-mostly metal sheets-then forms them to look like organic veins and tissues. He also mounts them on a flat ground to paint on.
He is the more transformational because he expertly turns the character of his material into what it is not.
Indeed, they are a dynamic duo pushing art making to new heights. The over-all collection in the gallery was a show of highly evolved art. It is fresh and all-new, especially now that they are venturing on making figurative pieces instead of showing only abstract art.
The still life on steel and the rendition of the "Last Supper" are something that immediately captures the attention because they somehow gave color to the almost monochromatic ground of the artworks. The two are bringing the excitement back to local art.