Art in the Park 2022: In the Metaverse and in real life

OVER 61 galleries, art schools, independent art spaces, art collectives, and, for the first time, an NFT marketplace, are slated to showcase their exhibits online from 10 a.m. on April 24 to May 1 at www.artinthepark.ph. And as the world opens up to more face-to-face activities, Art in the Park will also be presenting a lineup of events and exhibits live on April 28 at the Jaime C. Velasquez Park in Makati City.

Known as the more affordable counterpart to the Art Fair, Art in the Park features art whose prices are capped at P50,000.

This year’s exhibitors include Ang INK., Arnold Art Collection, ART for Space Gallery, ART LAB: Atelier Cesare & Jean Marie Syjuco, Art Toys PH, Art Underground, Art Verite Gallery, ArtBeat Collective, Artepintura Gallery, Artery Art Space, ArtPAPER, Association of Pinoyprintmakers, The Authenticity Zero Collective, Avellana ArtGallery, Boston Art Gallery, Cevio Art Haus, Cornerstone Pottery (EJ Espiritu), De La Salle – College of St. Benilde, District Gallery, FA Gallery, Far Eastern University, Galeria de las Islas, Galerie Anna, Galerie Artes, Galerie Stephanie, Good on Paper, Hugpong Panay, ILCP Art Space, J Studio, Jon and Tessy Pettyjohn, KAIDA Contemporary, KASIBULAN, Kababaihan sa Sining at Bagong Sibol na Kamalayan, Kulay Art Group, MAG, Manila Collage Collective, Mariyah Gallery, Mia Casal Ceramics, Modeka Art Space, MONO8, Museum Foundation of the Philippines, Nineveh Artspace, Orange Project, Pangasinan Group, Parokyano ng Malabon, Qube Gallery, Redlab Gallery, Resurrection Furniture, Sagada Pottery, Sheerjoy, Sierra Madre Gallery (Joey de Castro), Space Encounters, The Thursday Group, Tin-aw, TUP Manila, UP College of Fine Arts, Village Art Gallery, Vinyl on Vinyl, vMeme Contemporary Art Gallery, White Walls Gallery, and Ysobel Art Gallery.

Art in the Park will continue to benefit the Museum Foundation of the Philippines in support of its projects and programs for the National Museum of the Philippines and its network.

SPECIAL EXHIBITSThe affordable art fair will have a number of special exhibits in addition to the works presented by the galleries.

It welcomes back two of the most important artists practicing in the country today, the husband-and-wife Rodel Tapaya and Marina Cruz. Each artist will be presenting solo projects that underline their ongoing interests in experimentation with various media. Mr. Tapaya will be exhibiting nine artworks for Chicken Army, and Ms. Cruz will be exhibiting 11 artworks for Imprinted Musings.

Mr. Tapaya’s works are characterized by visionary narrative tableaux which combine folklore and social history into painterly figurations. Meanwhile, Ms. Cruz continues to explore the materiality of antique objects, photographs, and dresses and how they shape her personal biography. The couple founded IsTorya, a narrative design studio that celebrates creativity, love of identity, and new ways of learning that are rooted in the stories of the Filipinos.

Another special exhibit features Studio 1616, a group of art students under the mentorship of artist Lynyrd Paras who banded together in 2012 to present their work at Art in the Park. Now, a decade later, and in celebration of the fair’s 16th anniversary, they are back and will be exhibiting 15 artworks for sale, each measuring 16 x 16 inches, on the website.

They will also be exhibiting their work, Reflect Deflect, installed live at the Jaime Velasquez Park. The work takes off from the tents that characterize Art in the Park, using steel and mirrors as reflective surfaces that encourage visitors to examine themselves more closely.

The artists from Studio 1616 are Johanna Helmuth, Yeo Kaa, Jeremae Jumaoas, Jerahmeel Alvarez, Keb Cerda, Dale Erispe, Jayvee David, Jett Osian, Levin Paras, Ciron Señeres, Kiko Urquiola, Gian Miroe, Roy Rosatase, Yani Unsana, and Erick Villaruz.

The street artist Distort Monsters bridges digital art and traditional art with Monster Mayhem Megamash. Influenced by skateboarding and punk rock, the artist’s works revolve around countering adversity with some hardcore resilience. He has been painting for over a decade, with his work being brought to life on the streets, in gallery exhibitions, canvas pieces, art toys, public installations, and the metaverse.

Art in the Park, in partnership with Globe Platinum, will present 100 pieces from part two of Monster Mayhem MegaMash, that takes the artist’s colorful creatures in two-dimensional, three-dimensional, and digital forms, from murals to beyond NFTs (non-fungible tokens). These one-of-a-kind monsters will be available at www.artinthepark.ph as giclee prints that contain unique QR codes that when activated, will enable buyers of the prints to onboard the images as NFTs which they will also own. Priced at P9,500, the concept of the online exhibit takes off from Blindboxes, where buyers do not know which of the 100 unique prints and NFTs they have purchased until the giclee prints are delivered to them.

A live installation of 10 three-foot-high resin sculptures will complement the online exhibition of Monster Mayhem MegaMash. They will be on view at the Jaime Velasquez Park from April 24 to May 1.

Meanwhile, as part of their 30th-anniversary celebration, Ang Illustrador ng Kabataan (Ang INK) will present an exhibit called INK in the Park, with a collection of 40 artworks from various illustrators including Juno Abreu, Aldy Aguirre, Fran Alvarez, Jamie Bauza, Benedir Dasig, Jovan De Ocampo, Danielle Florendo, Liza Flores, Tin Javier, Jasmin Lacay, LD Mendoza, Arli Pagaduan, Jonathan Ranola, Mark L. Ruste, Jomike Tejido, and Ige Ochoa Trinidad.

ONLINE AND ONSITE EVENTSComplementing the online and onsite exhibits are several online events which will be held via Facebook Live. They are:

• the video premiere of IsTorya ni Rodel Tapaya and Marina Cruz will be held on April 24, 5:30 p.m.

• the video premiere of Studio 1616’s exhibit will be on April 25, 5:30 p.m.

• the video showing of INK STORY: 30 Years of Ang Illustrador ng Kabataan on April 26, 5 p.m.

• a panel discussion on INK Story: 30 Years of Ang Illustrador ng Kabataan, Ang INK with Ateneo Art Gallery will be held on April 26, 5:30 p.m.

• the video premiere of Distort Monsters’ Monster Mayhem Megamash on April 27, 5:30 p.m.

• and The Platinum Series, art activity for kids  on April 30, 10 a.m.

There will also be live events on April 28, 4-8 p.m. at Jaime Velasquez Park.

Distort Monsters will hold a live mural painting session starting at 3 p.m. on April 28. He will also discuss his Monster Mayhem MegaMash project, and how this bridges the gap between traditional art and NFTs in a talk scheduled at 5 p.m. on the same day.

Ang INK’s exhibition of new work available for purchase on this day. Art lovers also have the opportunity to see Studio 1616’s installation, Reflect Deflect live.

To complete the Art in the Park experience, a special two-hour DJ set by After The Noon Records will entertain the crowd from 6 to 8 p.m. Food and drinks will also be available at the park.

Art in the Park is organized by Philippine Art Events, Inc., for the benefit of the Museum Foundation of The Philippines and with support from Globe Platinum and Bank of The Philippine Islands.

For more information, visit www.artinthepark.ph and follow www.facebook/artinthepark and @artintheparkph on Instagram.