Hatching worms
February saw me not just celebrating another anniversary of life, but hatching plans.
That was why I was in Cebu shuttling among friends, not to just mindlessly socialize (which is a sport worth-pursuing once in a while) but to try to set up a charitable fundraiser.
You see, a former apartment-mate of mine in Banilad had initiated this foundation for children called Little Bamboo, and for the past 11 years, the foundation has been surviving on donations trickling in from Europe. The foundation exists to serve children from the slums, often offspring of drug addicts, and giving them a haven of sorts. Little Bamboo provides safe space, a day care center where play and learning is combined, and even bi-annual deworming services so the worms don't eat up the nutrition that's given the kids.
Fortunately, Anne von Bredow (nee de Vesian) was in town last week, and so I made a mad dash to Cebu to try and meet up with her on her once a year visit to the Philippines. There, we quickly established that the fundraiser was a welcome idea, and hopped to Qube Gallery to do an ocular.
Qube has quickly established itself as a contemporary art venue in Cebu, something so sorely lacking in the city, and since I am something of an art enthusiast (nominee for understatement of the week), we were playing with the idea of staging an art show, with part of the proceeds to be donated to Little Bamboo.
Who would be the artists? Who might Cebu be interested in? Since I am always snarking about the lack of variety among Cebu artists, I had earlier suggested something different to Qube. What about a couple of young artists from Bangkok, whose works were still affordable, and very different from what can normally be found in Cebu?
One was Arthit, who does expressively figurative watercolors and oils combined with green plants, vibrant flowers, and recently, cloudy hair (you'll see what I mean once you visit Qube and see his works). I had in fact commissioned a portrait from him, which everyone had, at the risk of being bludgeoned to smithereens, immediately concurred was beautiful.
The other was Gee, a pop sort of prince, who delights in rendering dogs in military fatigues, wolves with cigars, and cats in leopard print outfits. Gee has already had a solo show in Phnom Penh, and I thought offering him a show in another part of Southeast Asia might be attractive to him. (I am hiding the identities of these artists until showdate so people don't go to their studios and grab the gorgeous ones before the actual show.)
As the gods would have it, Qube was likewise enthusiastic about the idea of bringing in Thai artists to Cebu, and we suddenly had two names in mind. The last piece of the puzzle was the Pint area, the section in the gallery for pop up exhibits, and I explored the idea of offering it to Jon Ray Fernandez, a self-taught visual artist whose sensibilities are a fun mix of camp and vamp. Jon Ray is originally from Bacolod, studied in UP Cebu, and then migrated to Manila, where he spends his days ignoring friends and creating neon pop.
That was a bit tricky, I thought, as Jon Ray had only recently taken brush to canvas, and he might not be prepared to turn the spotlight on to his gradually maturing work. I might need to wheedle him gently into agreeing, but what do you know, Jon Ray quickly succumbed to my carrot.
So there we had it, three artists, and a date: July 21. Suddenly, a nebulous worm of an idea was something semi-concrete!
In the next few months, therefore, I will be badgering people to come to Qube with their checkbooks, and hounding three artists to sit down and create. I will also be urging the general populace to check out the website www.littlebamboo.info for more details on the foundation and the children it serves. If you want to help deworm kids, it will tell you what you need to do.
Wish me luck!
- Latest
