“SAULOG,” the first one-man show of artist / photographer Ruel Rosello now ongoing at Parklane Hotel, is an outburst of praise for the Sto. Nino, whom Rosello and his wife Juvy have been ardent devotees of for the past 20 years.
The exhibit features 13 of Rosello’s works, all of which depict scenes of the devotion to the Sto. Nino and of the Sinulog. There is movement; bright colors and adoration are on display for the Sto. Niño de Cebu. The statue is shown in each piece. The people are all wide-eyed under a brow of blue-gray, which is typical Rosello—wide-eyed in awe, joy and love for the Child God.
In his talk before the exhibit opening, Rosello revealed that he had two loves other than his wife: SunStar Cebu, where he worked as a photographer for 17 years, and his art. He prayed to the Niño for guidance, and the answer came late last year when SunStar accepted his offer to resign. Now, he is a full-pledged contemporary-modern visual artist.
His art bloomed only recently. In 2013, he was invited to join a CAI (Cebu Artists Inc.) exhibit by Celso Pepito, who saw great promise in his works. Rosello depicted wide-eyed ( “bulging eyes,” he said) figures, mostly of children playing local, now almost forgotten games. Pepito advised him to continue with his kind of art, with the wide-eyes being his “signature” so if you see it anywhere, you will know it is a Ruel Rosello.
His works sold very well and sometimes, before he could finish an ongoing work which he posted in Facebook, it would already have a buyer. Commissioned works came his way, and so, the resulting dilemma of whether to pursue his art or to continue to work as a photographer.
He also revealed that the main reason for his Sto. Niño devotion had been to ask for a child from the Niño. This has not been answered and a blow of sorts came last year when Juvy was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, which was followed by the removal of her ovaries, making it impossible for her to bear a child. Still, the couple’s devotion to the Niño remains. And because Parklane intends to donate its commission from the sales of the paintings to Cancer Warriors Foundation, Rosello is also going to donate part of his earnings to the same foundation.
The exhibit features 13 of Rosello’s Sinulog works, nine of which belong to collectors—Beverly Dayanan, Adrian Lee, Melanie Ng, lawyer Jane Paredes, Nimrod Quinones, Bernard Restificar and Michelle So. Of the four works available for sale, three were sold an hour after the exhibit opened. Rosello said, he still has nearly finished works that he will place in the exhibit.
“Saulog” is at the Parklane Hotel lobby and will be there until Jan. 29. See and share in wide-eyed in wonder at the love of Ruel Rosello for the Senyor Sto. Niño.