LOOKS KILL

Artis Corpus Gallery presents LOOKS KILL, an exhibition of paintings which feature the face, by artists Dominique Alfonso, Salvador Bañares, Mark Anthony Bello, Sherwin Callejo, Keb Cerda, Ronson Culibrina, Ivan Elpa, Kris Jan Gavino, Honesto Guiruela, Paul David Magisa, John Marin, Gene Paul Martin, Keo Mendoza, Kim Oliveros, Averil Paras, Diego Rivera, Ian Unsana, and Erick Villarruz. The show opens on Monday 6 December 2010 and will run till 29 December. It is co-produced by and will be mounted in the Inner Room of Sining Kamalig…an art gallery located at Level 4, Gateway Mall, Araneta Center, Cubao, QC. For inquiries: sms 0920.9537426 or email enricojlmanlapaz@yahoo.com.ph.


Exhibition Notes by ENRICO J. L. MANLAPAZ, exhibition curator
10 November 2010, Antipolo City

Sometime February last year, while planning for the eventually successful Batang Sining exhibition I curated for Artis Corpus Gallery, I thought of coming up with another major show of paintings and sculpture featuring the face. I titled it Mukhang Totoo. As in the title of the children’s show which carried two meanings (“child of art” and “artistic child”), the face exhibition title would also carry a double meaning. The Filipinese is really so colorful. One term or combination can mean two things, sometimes totally opposite of each other. Mukhang Totoo is a classic case: It means “true face” and “looks real,” implying that it is simply a representation of the real thing.

This concept I carried for eighteen months and it delivered its fruit sometime August this year when I was asked to assemble shows for the German Club. I requested my artist friends to produce and deliver small pieces (24”x24”) of paintings which I planned to periodically exhibit at the exclusive membership joint. I told them I would prefer “happy” or “light” artworks which can easily be digested by a more conservative crowd. I received an overwhelming response and within the next two months I was deluged with close to thirty works featuring the face. The German Club deal fizzled off and by the time Dr. Leovino Ma. Garcia decided to mount his own exhibition Experience the Face, I have in my stock some sixty or so paintings!

While assembling the pieces for Dr. Garcia’s show, I concurrently gave meaning to the collected pieces. Now knowing that the collection would be included in a major exhibition, the same artists started submitting more “serious” works. So serious they are that I decided then to half-heartedly change the name of the show. It was only when another exhibition with a name which sounded like “Mukhang Totoo” (specifically, “Mukha Mo, Mukha Ko”) materialized that the other half of my heart decided to violently and serendipitously change the name of this show.

The original title If Looks Can Kill was edited into the conditional If Looks Could Kill was edited into the affirmative Looks Can Kill and finally baptized into the decisive Looks Kill.

Here you are, ladies and gentlemen, is a show intended to complement the “more serious” exhibition Experience the Face, featuring some eighteen artists interpreting the title Looks Kill as “Hanep, pamatay sa ganda!” and “Pre, drop-dead gorgeous!” and “Killer Looks” and “Things that can kill.” The curator gave the liberties to the artists. Nevertheless, experience these faces, too!