The 54th Shell National Student Arts Competition (NSAC) Virtual Art Interaction showcased how the power of art can magnify the expression of advocacies, as well as how art enhanced by technology can break boundaries.
The last two sessions of the online workshop series, organized by the Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation, were anchored on the “restART” theme – that the nation’s future can be revitalized through creativity and craftsmanship in various art subdisciplines.
Conrado Parizal, Pilipinas Shell’s Country Social Performance and Social Investment Manager, highlighted how NSAC supports the country’s young generation of artists “to inspire their countrymen to seize the wonder that still surrounds us despite the hardship, to see their own inner light and realize it despite the darkness.”
Workshop participants of the Shell NSAC Virtual Art Interact learned how to use modern-day technology to produce art.
The first session highlighted how the challenges posed by the lockdowns resulted in the exploration of technology’s innovative applications for art.
Leading the “From the Screen to Walls: A Mural Workshop” was Anjo Bolarda, a muralist, graphic designer, and illustrator.
“Without tech, I wouldn’t be able to interact and grow my fanbase which is crucial to the life and development of an artist,” Bolarda said.
NSAC Alumni Jophel Ybiosa shared the advantages that tech brings to art: “My photos used to be displayed in private exhibits, but now with social media it can be displayed for all to see. What’s important to me is people seeing my works.”
For Tokwa Penaflorida, a figurative artist specializing in the human form, art and advocacies are intertwined.
“You cannot really divorce art from other things, especially in helping the economy. Everything we are producing, whether in engineering, media or even in cerebral things like science and math—all of those are still about the betterment of humanity. Art is always incorporated. It just boils down to being aware of the power it has in the different industries,” Penaflorida said.
Isko Andrade, a three-time SHELL NSAC winner, added: “Art is everywhere. Passion and art can express one’s self.”
