ON ITS third year, Art Fair Philippines will showcase the best in Philippine contemporary art from Feb. 5 to 8 at The Link in Makati City.
As the country’s premiere platform, it will host the country’s top galleries and a curated section of solo presentations by the most exciting artists on the local art scene. This year, the organizers have chosen professor and mentor to a generation of artists Robert Feleo to feature his work at the art fair’s central exhibit space.
“From the very beginning, one of our missions is to widen the exposure of local artists. Robert Feleo’s name does not ring a bell; he’s unknown, but if you ask a lot of young artists, they always mention him as their mentor. We felt it was high time to show his works,” said Trickie Lopa of Art Fair Philippines.
For the art fair, Feleo will debut life-sized pieces that delve into a pivotal point in Philippine history at the Link’s sixth level.
Robert Feleo studied art history at the University of the Philippines and received a bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts from the Philippine Women’s University (PWU) in 1982. He taught at PWU and at the Philippine High School for the Arts in the 1980s. Awards and recognition he received include the grand prize at the first Metrobank Foundation art competition in 1984 and the Cultural Center of the Philippines Thirteen Artists Awards in 1988.
At The Link’s seventh level, highlight pieces by Poklong Anading, Annie Cabigting, Buen Calubayan, Mariano Ching and Yasmin Sison, Kawayan de Guia, Alfredo Esquillo Jr., Geraldine Javier, and Maria Taniguchi will be exhibited along with Mike Adrao’s highly detailed drawings with a socio-political gothic vibe.
Just like in 2014, Christie’s will run Art Fair Philippines’ lecture series, Christie’s Art Forum. The series of talks designed to deepen the interest of enthusiasts will run daily for the duration of the fair.
Spaces for 33 galleries, eight of them based outside the Philippines, will spread out over two levels. The 2015 participating galleries include 1335 Mabini, Altromondo, Archivo, Arndt, Art Cube, Artesan, Art Informal, Art Verite, Avellana Art Gallery, Blanc, Boston Gallery, CANVAS, Crucible, Edouard Malingue Gallery, Equator Art Projects, Finale Art File, Galeria Duemila, Galerie Michael Janssen, J Studio, MO_, Nova Gallery, Nunu Fine Art, Pablo, Paseo Gallery, ROH Projects, Salcedo Private View, Secret Fresh, Silverlens, TAKSU, The Drawing Room, Tin-Aw Art Gallery, Vinyl on Vinyl, West Gallery. – Carla Mortel