Tuesday, January 22, 2008 Back to black and white By Ritchie Landis Doner Quijano
TWO master photographers from the Camera Club of the Philippines (CCP) aim to show us the alternate reality on the other side of the colorful spectrum: black and white pictures. And the two lensmen Emil Davocol and Rudy de Leon want viewers to see things in a different light.
“Black and White Rainbows” opened on Jan. 16 at the north wing of SM City Cebu. For starters their exhibit title did intrigue, amuse, and capture immediate interest. It also sounded surreal. But that’s what art is: it shouldn’t be taken literally.
The CCP is 79 years old and aging well. The “master photographer” title is given annually to a club member who garners the highest total of accumulated points in monthly contests. Davocol, in his long career, has traversed the worlds of illustration, cartooning, graphic design, art direction and photography, perhaps his passion above all.
Known as “Davoks” among his close friends and colleagues, he received his first regional award in 1976 for Asia’s Best Photograph then it was followed by a series of local and international awards of excellence from the advertising industry. Both Davocol and de Leon are very well rounded men in their field.
De Leon, aside from his preoccupation with shooting pictures, is a master printer as well. He took a correspondence course in the New York Institute of Photography to hone and further his dark room techniques during his stint with ad agencies in the 70s. He was a member of the Candid Camera Club in Quiapo prior to becoming a member of the CCP. And he has his share of awards from international saloon competitions.
The two men’s photographs will be printed on canvas as wall prints and they document of a time that has stood still. All photos were taken from their travels around the country, some very rare images that will silently invite viewers to get to know the hidden parts of the archipelago.
