“You could smell his studio just by being here,” Norman Crisologo, the curator of artist Jigger Cruz’s latest show at The M (The Metropolitan Museum of Manila), says with amusement. The artist stands beside him, looking vaguely bashful at the mention of his obsession with his craft, as if the pile of oil paint tubes—emptied to the last bead—isn’t proof enough. Crisologo was right. The pungent scent of oil paint spread throughout The M’s second level, which was capacious enough to hold a labyrinth of the artist’s works. Borrowed from collectors over the years, the works amassed for the exhibit entitled Hail Holy Eyes count just under 200 pieces. And to those who are well-acquainted with Cruz’s practice, this stands as a feat considering his track record of massive canvases richly covered with pure, unadulterated oil paint spread, layered, scratched, burned, or splattered, making Jigger Cruz “Jigger Cruz.” Extensive as..
