In the Mood to Mull: 7 Shows to Prompt Reflection in this Rainy Season
The advent of the rainy season calls for a meditative mood. Not that such a state must be forced, even considering that the scent of petrichor alone is compelling enough to move our consciousness into meanderings of sorts, but should one lean into this, paying a visit to galleries across Metro Manila might just enrich one’s contemplations.
Juan Alcazaren’s Addressing the Room at Artinformal Gallery
Juan Alcazaren found a home address that matches his practice in Artinformal’s Gallery 3. An awardee of the Thirteen Artists Award in 2000, Alcazaren is known for his unconventional use of found objects–monoblock, rubber boots, ironing horse, and steel scrubs among others–to create a display that strikes his viewers as familiar and yet surprising. A graduate of landscape architecture, Alcazaren’s artistic journey have turned to objects that have become his alphabet, and space, his medium.
The exhibition runs through to July 23. To learn more, visit https://www.instagram.com/artinformalgallery/
Hanna Pettyjohn’s New Ghosts at Mo_Space
All houses have their ghosts, but those that inhabit Hanna Pettyjohn’s come in the form of ceramic glazes and objects formed by the hands of her own acclaimed ceramicist parents, Tessy and Jon. Growing up in a studio that doubles as her home, Pettyjohn has adapted elements of their domestic landscape into her own paintings. Transformed and translated as references by the artist, they cue a transgenerational exchange of distinct tenderness.
The exhibition runs through to August 9. To learn more, visit https://www.instagram.com/mo_space/
Lyndon Maglalang, ND Harn, Rom Villaseran and Valerie Chua’s Passing Figures at Modeka Gallery
An interruption in stillness by movement is not always the shadow cast by a decision made. In this show, curator Chloe Magpayo contemplates on the inconclusive act of passing, as in space, and as one does in daily, ordinary moments. Through the works of artists Lyndon Maglalang, ND Harn, Rom Villaseran and Valerie Chua, “passing” translates to a feeling of elusiveness, channeled in their respective styles.
The exhibition runs through to August 1. To learn more, visit https://www.instagram.com/modeka.art/
Roberto Feleo’s Haraya at The Drawing Room Gallery
It is always a good idea to see the works of an artist such as the late Roberto Feleo. What it’s like to soak in the spirit of our archipelagic myths and histories and to evoke them through works of art with utmost dedication is epitomized in Feleo’s prolific run before his death in 2025. This rare opportunity that must, without a doubt, be taken by collectors and art enthusiasts alike.
The exhibition runs through to August 15 .To learn more, visit https://www.instagram.com/drawingroommanila/
Ioannis Sicuya’s At the End of the Tunnel at Vinyl on Vinyl
Ioannis Sicuya is not afraid to confront the possibility that no light follows when the reaper arrives. Formed in epoxy, Sicuya’s wall-bound ivory altars recreate the grandiosity and scale just like those in churches carved in marble and stone. The artist, however, is deliberate in depicting debris and erosion. Displayed in the dark with light emitting from the back of his works, crumbling has never looked so marvelous in its finiteness.
The exhibition runs through to July 28. To learn more, visit https://www.instagram.com/vinylonvinyl/
Kim Oliveros’ Night Walks at Finale Art File
It goes without saying that even artists experience pressure. What makes them different from the rest of the flock, perhaps, is that a good amount of aimless wandering–rather than the conventional “just push through” method–is what gets them over the fence. For artist Kim Oliveros, long walks in his hometown Angono, Rizal under the blanket of the night does the job of getting him unstuck. Changes in this landscape does not escape the artist, who records them in his multi-layered paintings which he pairs with an installation of over a hundred bird sculptures.
The exhibition runs through to August 8. To learn more, visit https://www.instagram.com/finaleartfileinc/
Jayme Lucas, Lymuel Bautista, and Judeo Herrera et. al: Offset at Boston Art Gallery
A spirit of traditional Filipino realism exudes from the works of Jayme Lucas, Lymuel Bautista, and Judeo Herrera. Such quality is stretched to more contemporary variants and experimentations by other participating artists such as Marco Tabamo, Jean Viduya and Ace Navarro. In this exhibition, artists probe into the paradoxical reality and how its fragmentation–in the deluge of societal events and personal concerns–reflect a moral condition.
The exhibition runs through to July 21. To learn more, visit https://www.instagram.com/thebostonartgalleryphilippines/