Let's Get Physical: Art Fair Philippines Goes Hybrid and with its First In-Person Show since 2020 - Arts & Culture

The fair will run from March 23 to April 1.

Art Fair Philippines will present a hybrid event for this year’s edition.

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The fair will run from March 23 to April 1 with physical exhibitions arranged at Ayala Triangle Gardens and gallery venues, as well as online exhibitions and other activities accessible through their website.

This marks their first physical exhibition staged since 2020.

Here’s what you can expect from this year’s art fair.

Exhibitors

A total of 46 local and international exhibitors will showcase artworks in their respective physical locales and through online viewing rooms via ArtFairPhilippines.com.

Philippine exhibitors include 1335Mabini, Altro Mondo Gallery, Art Cube Gallery, Art Elaan, Art For Space, Art Underground, Art Verite Gallery, Artery Art Space, Avellana Art Gallery, Boston Art Gallery, CANVAS, District Gallery, Eskinita Gallery, Galerie Roberto, Galerie Stephanie, Grounded Holistic Arts and Culture Studio, J Studio, Kaida Contemporary, León Gallery, Luzviminda, Modeka, MONO8 Gallery, Paseo Art Gallery, Pinaglabanan X, Qube Gallery, Salcedo Private View, Secret Fresh, Silverlens, Strange Fruit, The Crucible Gallery, Tin-aw, The Metro Gallery, White Walls Gallery, and Ysobel Art Gallery.

Six international galleries—Art Agenda, Gajah Gallery, Mayoral, Yavuz Gallery, Gallery Kogure, and YOD Gallery—will join the fair. These hail from Singapore, Jakarta, Yogyakarta, Paris, Barcelona, Sydney, Tokyo, and Osaka.

Two NFT galleries, A/terhen and Cyber Baat, will also present exhibitions at the fair this year. 

Additionally, several art groups from the country’s three main island groups will join the fair’s section with Regional Focus. These are Ibagiw Art Fest x Gallery 2600 (Luzon), VIVA ExCon Dasun Bacolod x Orange Project (Visayas),  Langgikit x Museo De Oro x Art Portal Gallery (Mindanao), and Lawig-diwa x Gallery Down South (Mindanao).

Physical Spaces

Art Fair Philippines will present installations at the Ayala Tower One Fountain Area for the ArtFairPh/Projects section. This is in collaboration with art consultant Norman Crisologo and exhibition designer Ed Lacson.

Featured artists this year include the late Arô Soriano and social realist Nune Alvarado. Their works will be presented in a special exhibition. New commissions from Filipino visual artists Bjorn Calleja, Johanna Helmuth, Ryan Jara, Doktor Karayom, Tyang Karyel, Aze Ong, and Wyndelle Remonde will also be displayed.

Rounding off the physical exhibit are the ArtFairPH/Photo and ArtFairPH/Film sections.

The photo section is curated by Neal Oshima, Michael Salientes, Mark Nicdao, and Gio Panlilio. It contains the exhibit “Tattoos, Ternos, and Couture, A Celebration of Philippine Fashion Photography.”

Meanwhile, the film section will present works by New York-based new media artist Jeremy Couillard. These include his new film, There Is No Up Or Down, Only Attraction.

Jeremy Couillard’s There Is No Up Or Down, Only Attraction

Digital Alternative

All the exhibits by this year’s participants will be viewable on the Art Fair Philippines website. Moreover, guests can join the Gallery Walkthrough for virtual tours of the exhibitors on March 23 and 24.

The online edition will exclusively feature ArtFairPH/Talks, ArtFairPH/Open Studios, and ArtFairPH/Tours.

The talks section will provide a series of virtual discussions with independent curator and arts writer Paco Barragán, a panel discussion about NFTs, and a conversation on the aforementioned fashion photography exhibit, among others.

The open studios section will showcase a three-part series of pottery demos called “Conversations on Clay” with Jezzel Wee, Marco Rosario, Ella Mendoza, Krista Nogueras, Jon Pettyjohn, and Joey de Castro.

Lastly, the virtual art tours section will see “Baguio Artists Studio Visits: Part 2” and “Bolipata and Borlongan Talyer Video Tour,” which will bring guests on visits to artists’ studios.

10 Days Of Art

Complementing the fair is the 10 Days of Art initiative. This is a series of events around the Makati Central Business District that celebrates art beyond the main venue.

Art installations around Makati will be open to visitors.

Major public exhibits include an installation by James Clar entitled “I Can’t Tell You What I Don’t Know, Only That I Don’t Know.” This will be available at the plinth in front of the Ayala Museum.

James Clar’s “I Can’t Tell You What I Don’t Know, Only That I Don’t Know”

More information on programs and schedules of activities can be found on Art Fair Philippines’ website and social media pages.

Photos via Art Fair Philippines

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