"Dry Rub" notes
(Or all after seeing the event at Cubao Expo's
Pablo Art Gallery)
The sound of techno and a variety of remixes blares aloud as the people enjoys drinking beer, eating hotdogs and barbecue, having chitchat, if not seeing the strange paintings last saturday at Cubao Expo.
As the exhibition, entitled "Dry Rub", showcases artworks in commemoration of Pablo Art Gallery's 10th year Anniversary. Most of the artworks featured in that event are made by well known artists from the alternative scene like Maria Cruz, Mark Salvatus, and the Punk legend Romeo Lee.
And like nay other exhibition this person econountered (like Vitamin Shit a moth ago), this person finds it amazing to see those works in which most likely to describe as "anti-norm", "deviant", "morbid", or even "surreal" given its appearance. Some of which bear titles like "Sex is Easy, Love is Hard" that is being written in one of the paintings.
However, one of the artworks that made this person thinks about a mish mash of real and imaginary figures reflecting those of popular culture is made out of a souvenir from Hong Kong. This person may not know about the maker behind the said work, but that person had turned that souvenir into an artwork with all the paintings and pasted images featured such as cartoon characters, a figure of a person from a familiar restaurant, and lastly: King Kong climbing over one of Hong Kong's skyscrapers.
Another artwork did also captures this person's imagination through this banner. At first, it may look upon as a typical banner coming from a group of Black Nazarene devotees, with all the Maroon and Golden Yellow colour featured, only to found out a snake creeping over Jesus Christ's crown of thorns and a third eye on the cheek. Some people would say that it is controversial to feature as it reminds of a work in which made fanatics of a particular faith gone mad after seeing religious figures as part of pop art. But realistically speaking, it did reflects about the fatalism in which most Filipinos turned gone wrong such as those seeing them praying and at the same time gossiping.
There are other artworks that somehow find it "commercial" to some, yet from the makers it somehow reflects what most people seen today. The works of Romeo Lee makes a throwback on this person's behalf through one of his writeups about him. As the artsy crowd seemingly gone 'serious' in engaging, be it those of making calligraphy, poetry, to those of going to art galleries and meeting with some acquaintances, this person would say that some can really become serious if most are being driven by the trend to "engage in art", most of which are made to impress yet far from the works be it from the well known to the unfamiliar that only few would afford to amaze.
Well, admittingly speaking, out of curiousity and perhaps looking for an idea enough to create, this person entices to enter and see those good works, meet some personages besides Romeo Lee, and enjoy cold beer while seeing people chatting and typing this writeup. The sound continues to blare as the artsy crowd continues to enter and look at the artworks, if not a reunion with the organisers, artists, and friends alike in that commemorative occasion.