In “Habagatan,” Philippine Art Award Grand Prize winner Jericho Vamenta offers his signature sgraffito technique, layering color and scratching away at the surface to arrive at a distinctly narrative piece. Dumaguete winner Jana Jumalon-Alano incorporates personal items and found objects in her mixed media series, shaping each artifact into an offering. From Butuan and Iloilo respectively, Gualberto Licong and Mariano Catague mine heavily from Southern lore and society in subject and style. Cagayan de Oro native Christopher Gomez evokes Basquiat in his subversive interpretation of portraiture.
Together, the works are not just a sampling of what lies south of the center: they also serve as vessels for the artist’s identity and individual art practice set against his cultural milieu.