THE Junior Chamber International (JCI) Kagayhaan Gold has opened a fundraising art exhibit called "Blends" on Sunday, January 14, wherein the proceeds will be donated to the organization's community projects which center on supporting children and women empowerment.
"The name of the event is called 'Blends' because its a blend of coffee and watercolor. And it is a blend of art and charity for a cause because the proceeds of the painting will be donated to JCI Kagayhaan Gold community projects," Owen Jaen, the president of JCI Kagayhaan Gold, said.
Held in Kagay-an Coffee Cartel, Cagayan de Oro City, Jaen said the owner of the cafe is also a member of the organization, thus, the painting were put up in the said shop.
The art exhibit, which features the watercolor paintings of Bea Magtajas and coffee paintings of Ian Gesta, will run for a month, from January 14 to February 14.
Magtajas said it was upon the recommendation of Gesta, who is her friend and fellow artist, that she was able to join the exhibit.
According to Magtajas, the concept or the theme of their art centers on the representation of their inner thoughts.
"These are anecdotes ng mga buhay namin (of our lives)," Gesta, a coffee painter and also a member of the JCI Kagayhaan Gold, said.
This will be Magtajas' first exhibit and Gesta's third.
Magtajas said the exhibit also aims to promote art in Cagayan de Oro City, adding that millennial and a few art connoisseurs in the city are the only ones who appreciate them.
"The struggle is to remove the mentality na mahal ang art (that art is expensive) and its not really worth investing," Magtajas said.
This was echoed by Gesta, hoping that young artists will be brave enough to stand out.
"Ang goal ko this year, ayokong gumawa ng art na parang hindi honest. Gusto kong gumawa ng art na totoo talaga, kung anong gusto kong ikuwento, kung anong nararandaman ko (My goal this year, I don't want to create art which seems to be not honest. I want to create art that is real, what I want to say, what I feel)," Gesta said.
According to the artists, each of the art work costs P3,500.
Jaen said they already sold three artworks even before the exhibit opened, adding that the buyers were from outside Cagayan de Oro City, such as Manila and Cebu.
Paintings which were not sold in the duration of the exhibit, Jaen said, will be auctioned through online bidding.
"We will be posting the pictures online, if they want to visit the actual paintings, they have to come here from now until February 14. But if they don't have the time or they are not from here, they can access our JCI Kagayaan Gold Facebook page, we have an album there and we will upload the pictures, the titles and the prices," Jaen added.
JCI Kagayhaan Gold is a non-profit organization composed of young professionals and businessmen in Cagayan de Oro City.
The organization has adopted a school in Talakag, Bukidnon, the Masimag Elementary School, where they gave books and a bookshelf; conducted several seminars for kids regarding proper hand washing, hygiene and health care; and vitamins and school supplies distribution.
JCI Kagayhaan Gold, according to Jaen, has also organized a program called "Teach to the Streets" wherein the group goes around the city and teach the children in slum areas and also those street children on the different United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDG) "so they can understand the impact of the UNSDG to them as children and as a single part of the society."
A large part of the proceeds from the art exhibit will be donated to these community projects, Jaen said.