The first Southern Mindanao Art Laboratory (ARTEX), a project supported by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts under the subcommittee of visual arts, had just started the three-month program for selected fellows in Davao City.
One of the organizers of the event, Angely Chi, said they want to experiment on something small but they are looking at a bigger scale next time. It will be a sort of laboratory for local artists.
“Artists should not be just concerned about exhibiting works and we should push forward more critical conversations about art and culture,” Chi said, adding that artists should be constantly evolving not just as art producers but also as critical citizens.
Eight Filipino artists were chosen this year for the Artex and among their activities were to critique art practices and expand artworks by doing community visits in the Badjao community at Matina Aplaya and the T’boli in Lake Sebu.
Chi said that they are planning on making the event every two years, stating that by October there will be presentations made by the fellows of this year’s Artex.
“We want to push a more inter-disciplinary approach to art, that we should not be limited in practicing art by one discipline, we need to experiment more to evolve our art making,” she added.
The ArtEx 2019 fellows are Kharla Jhoei Acosta, Frank Lloyd Ampalayo dela Cruz, Mai Ongkiko, Megan Palero, Noy Narciso, Markee Narreto, Rose Faith Gentica Necesito, and Wilfred Dexter Tanedo.
