Babbu Wenceslao by Yvette Malahay-Kim

Antonio “Babbu” Alunan Wenceslao and I went to the same art school in college. Since then we’ve done group exhibitions, concerts, conferences, workshops, outdoor events and teach art.

YMK: After graduating from art school in UP, how did your art practice evolve?

BW: Art and art practice to me have definitions of their own, including their own progressions. Its always a challenge to check on their footprints. But early on, I was always drawn to teaching, even before finishing art school, we conducted the Summer Art workshop which was hosted by Lab-as Restaurant and the generous patronage of the late Vicente Fuentes. We ran the workshop for about twenty summers since there was no formal training in the arts in Dumaguete back then. We 

taught creativity for kids and basic drawing and painting for adults. Immediately after art school, I joined Silliman University (because you took your MA in UP Diliman) teaching FA 51 - Art Appreciation which I did for a couple of years. So my engagement with art you could say still leans heavily in the practice of teaching its craft.      

1989. College days at the basement where the
University of the Philippines Cebu Fine Arts was located

YMK: What is the usual subject matter that you give attention too? Why?

BW: My works I believe are a bit simple, but they revolve around several contemporary issues and multiple subjects from the environment to aesthetics. But then again primarily, my initiatives are always drawn with the intent, and in the circumstance and objective of amplifying collective visual consciousness. This I believe is a fundamental principle and purpose of art. 

Why? As a people, our icons are drawn in the faint and blurred outlines of collective doubt, shrouded in the shadows of our colonial position and the effective mechanisms of a western dominated media. It is in the realm of art where as a culture we can possibly re-trace and reinforce, create and elevate the very shape and form of own images. Art allows us the ability to visually refine and define our aspirations, and differentiate ourselves as a culture in the context of contemporary life.       

             

YMK: What compelled you to create a fine arts program in college and eventually open up in Foundation University?

1995, Guy Hall, Silliman U

BW: I grew up surrounded by a lot of creative people, mostly writers and a couple of painters, colleagues and students of my mother whose conversations always drift into how Dumaguete as a place, is always seen and felt as familiar and personal geography, a haven nurturing to the creative mind and warm to the artistic spirit. Somehow I kept this thought of the city as an ideal place to study the arts.

When I joined Silliman University in 1996 (?), there was an ongoing initiative to open a painting program under the School of Music, so I wrote and finished the BFA curriculum proposal, it was approved by the Silliman Academic Council under Dean Susan but was eventually deferred from implementation by a departmental change in administration. 

           

On an early morning mountain bike trail ride to Valencia, I disclosed the prospect to Architect Dean Sinco who was opening an Architecture program. I wrote a new curriculum proposal, and the first Fine Arts school in the province was opened that very year, 2006. Now we have two art schools in a small city. Architect Gerard Uymatiao would say, "be careful with what you ask for because you might get it." 

             

YMK: How do you mix music and poetry in your visual arts practice? Or rather, how is it intertwined?

BW: They are all quite confusingly intertwined. Music is very important to me. I listen to a lot of genres. I've read mostly my mother's poems and those that she feeds me, and they are all inspiring but I personally do not do poetry. I've never formally trained in music but I think I can write a song and play a few chords in the guitar, but the lyrics however are more prose than poetry. Music and the visual arts are all equal creative pursuits, part and parcel of the entire package, or should I say baggage? 

YMK: How do you achieve balance in the many things you are involved in? from teaching, managing tours, managing a restaurant, producing art, and last but not the least, caring for your family...

BW: Balance as a principle even in art is an ideal. Real life is always a circus act, a tightrope walk, every step is a leap of faith and a constant correction, a recovery from the imbalance that was created by the very act of movement.

I do happen to have a slack-line, that my wife ironically gave me as a birthday gift. What I learned from trying it out is that there is no specific technique, everyone has to intuitively find his own style to walk and stay on the swinging flat webbing, except, for the common shared experience, that every now and then you will fall and then when you get back and get to successfully cross the line, it was because you were looking ahead, every step of the way.        

YMK: Among the different media (i.e. pencil, paint, wood, clay etc) that you have worked with, what is your favorite and why?

BW: Every creative material is an artistic tool, I personally do not have a ranking till this question. So that would be clay and wood. Clay and wood as creative materials were the foremost mediums that were used by our pre-colonial ancestors. Negros island has a lot of anthropological earthen and wooden artifacts. The earliest objects and images that our ancestors created were shaped and formed using clay, wood or bamboo. Paint and pigment as a dominant medium of representation is largely colonial influence.  

YMK: How do you think is the study of studio arts relevant in an age that is driven by computers, smart phones and tablets?

BW: It has never been as important. Art to a large extent is derivative, globally we have never experienced this as we are now. Originality is a patent. But the demand for image, its utility and access has grown exponentially. We partially think and speak english as a colonized culture, but in the virtual world, imagery has become the terminology, the new language of global psycholinguistics.

Human cognition and understanding is a visual process, this has not changed since our earliest ancestors. In this information age, our visual faculty has become even more important. A culture's ability to visualize and envision will determine its capacity to cope, anticipate, and eventually overcome. Which is why we need leaders with a keen sense of vision, and a critical eye for finding visual solutions. 

1995, Planning stage of the Fine Arts Curriculum in Dumaguete. With Silliman University
School of Music and Fine Arts Director Susan V. Zamar, Leonel de Jesus, Jutsze Pamate,
curator Bobi Valenzuela, JB Bernadas, Babbu Wenceslao, Bianca Espinos and Yvette Malahay.

The studio arts as a discipline in aesthetics and imagery trains the eye and the mind in the creation and purpose of imagery. It is significant in the sense that it provides our culture the ability to illustrate and visually configure its own aspirations and provide the capacity to participate in the continuous development and understanding of human culture. (end of interview)     

Babbu continues to joggle his roles as a teacher at Foundation University, manager at El Amigo and Cafe Memento, tour guide for Island Life Adventure tours, father to three kids, and husband to the love of his life, June Cleo.

Hersley Ven Casero by Ramon del Prado

(The interview was done in Bisaya-English. The italicized words are english translations from the conversation for accessibility for a wider audience.)

Here's a peek into the mind of one of Dumaguete City's most fun and prolific visual artists, Hersley Ven Casero.

RdP: Hersley when did you discover this gift?

HVC:  I think I started drawing when I was 5 years old. I was still small then. But not using paints or acrylics or watercolors. I only used wooden sticks, or, kagingking, kawayan, kahoy. And I usually draw on the soil in our frontyard. So that's where I began. And then, I entered kindergarten which is 6 years old. And then, I will never forget, my first ever drawing or artwork that was the reason why I decided to do more art was a helicopter. A helicopter. A very simple line drawing of a helicopter. And then it was featured by my teacher on the bulletin board. As the artwork of the week! I was given  juice and bread! When I graduated from Kindergarten, my teacher gave me an award, I think that was best in art. By that time, I don't know what is, a so called artist. And then, mom was told that I would be an artist when I grew up. I laughed it off because I had no idea what an artist would be.

The first formal art competition I joined was in grade 2, against grade 5 and grade 6 pupils. and of course I did not win. During that time, the only material I had was that very bristled brush you know that brand, Guitar water color. What we used that time is kartolina and then. When I was making artwork, I made a hole through the kartolina!

But then, I think the thing about me is that I am an "unfrustrated" kind of person even when I was young. The more I feel defeated, the more I am challenged, and the more I face the battle or something like that. I was challenged. I will practice drawing!

And then, my parents, I mean, they did not really support my art, by that time, but that was because they had no idea what I was doing.  And then, the only material I had was water color that was really bristled and also, I think 6 colors of Crayola crayons! So it's very very, starting from very humble beginnings my art.

Hersley at his studio.

RdP: Tell us about your Influences

HVC: In high school I had a coach. There I learned about Fernando Amorsolo, And then one of the earliest works that influenced me if you notice my works now have very stylized faces? With open mouths. I distorted them after I was exposed to the works of Onib Olmedo. Olmedo distorted the figures and I really liked the idea and the possibilities! I did not know it was possible! I started applying these in my later contests, making new styles as I go along. Developing, developing until college in Foundation University. There were no fine arts programs in the schools then.

Maam Muffet Villegas was my first serious acrylic and oil art instructor. She taught me how to use materials but I got shy because she would invite me to their house and I would be the one fed and given materials even! I owe a lot to her back then. I still do.

I had a lot of encouragement, from teachers, Maam Moffet, scholarship opportunities from Foundation University, meeting other artists in Dumaguete, eventually my parents, and my family, they understand already that this is my life, even when I was still in college, I'm coming from a very humble, poor, family.

I had 4 great artists I've been watching my whole life. The great titans.

Matisse, Dali, Picasso, and Warhol. I really studied them. How they dealt with their work while they were alive. I looked at their daily life. What a crazy life an artist has! Messy lovelife, messy family life, their art career is a struggle!

My favorite is Picasso. I am really impressed by his work. In the internet, I see he made his works in series. He had a blue period, a rose period, and cubism later on.

RdP: He made sculptures too!

HVC: Yes he made sculptures, ceramics, why was he able to make all these? Ah, he divided his works by series!

RdP: You still maintain a very whimsical look in your work. It seems to be a strong trademark.

HVC: I love the word "Whimsical".

RdP: What does it mean for you?

HVC: For me, it means freedom. When I paint whimsical, it's like the brain, heart, and hand are one. When I do whimsical work, I am smiling. Based on my studies in art history, artists all have one thing they pursue: Happiness. Not Suffering. So every artist were wanting to pursue happiness. That's me too. I am pursuing happiness in my work. I don't want to limit my strokes when I paint. Do you know the feeling when you are forced to paint? It's too difficult!

I like the flow of lines, colors. There is freedom. And through whimsicality, and the whimsical work that I make, that's where I get freedom and happiness.

RdP: Is this state during the process of making the painting or when the painting is finished?

HVC: Oftentimes, I love the process, and I really love experimenting. I use the word experimenting even if I'm not a scientist. Because I like to experiment with mediums, different textures, different surfaces, materials, I like to play. So like that, it's the process. That's where I have fun. And as the painting process ends, I sometimes lose enthusiasm, I am sad that I am almost finished. But! When I am almost finished, I get excited because that means I get to start a new project again!

RdP: How do you deal with criticism?

HVC: You don't have to mind what people say. Even art critics, for me, it's their opinion. So that's on them. They're not the only ones in this world. And my work talks about the universe! My works are from my personal experiences, on what is the current affair. Like how some artists have a muse, my muse is the universe!

RdP: You seem to have a lot of energy to create all these. You say you get it from the Universe?

HVC: That's True. I'm not joking.

RdP: There are artists that lose inspiration, they get depressed and stop creating.

HVC: It's okay, it's okay to be lost, but be sure to be found. Ang idea is that we all have a downtime. Sometimes, I am also lost. My mind can be flooded with ideas flying and walking about! Do you know what I do? Meditation bai.

RdP: Meditation clears your mind.

HVC: Meditation is good. It's okay to be lost sometimes, just don't let it get the best of you. Family can help you, I think they're the closest people that can understand you. They can uplift you, even if you have no inspiration. There are many ways to get inspired, not necessarily that you lose yourself. But meditation is really important for me.

RdP: You had a photograph having been plagiarized by someone that made it to national news. How do you feel about people that steal artwork  and claim it for themselves?

HVC: I feel sad. Sad for both sides. Especially for the artist that copies. Social media is such a small circle. The world is so small.  I pity the artist also. It's a very sad reality that this happens, we don't know, someone is stealing pics this very moment.  The Laughing boy project covered the idea of what is really authenticity. It's very easy to copy and paste, but it will never be as beautiful as the original. It's like getting a print of a painting.

RdP: It's interesting because it was originally a stolen art, but you turned the situation around and made it a large scale artist collaboration project!

HVC: My father has a story. If you are a good fruit bearing tree, people will throw stones at you. I should just give out the fruits first before they start throwing stones at me. If you have gifts to create, just keep creating, and always pursue things that will make you happy. I think all of us really wants to pursue happiness not suffering. What makes you happy, and what feels right, then do it. The only person that will know is yourself. You only have one life in this planet.

RdP and HVC

RdP: What is happiness for you?

HVC: This is a poetic response. Happiness for me is when I can sleep well at night, and wake up the next day breathing fresh air. Waking up with no troubles in my head. I achieve that by creating art. My works, my mission and objectives with my work. I dwell into the light and into positivity. I want to share the light. Other artists share a different kind of light, maybe another side of art, but mine, I really love it. That's why I love using yellow, orange, warm colors. For now. But art will keep evolving.

I'm the kind of person that can find inspiration in the smallest thing in any corner of the world. Like a rusty gate "hey nice rust" or spit on the road "a creature!".

You can check his online porfolio at
http://hersleycasero.com/

Xteve Abanto by Yvette Malahay-Kim

This column aims to be a platform for visual artists to express their viewpoints through conversations with fellow artists. For our first feature, we talked to Stephen “Xteve”Abanto, practicing artist and one of the founders of 13Headz Creative Studios.

YMK: On your artistic journey, what made you interested in art?

XA: There’s this one anecdote that my mom told me, she said that I drew before I wrote my name, and it struck me in profound ways. Luckily, my mom kept my drawings. She said that I had something in me that made me special.

Growing up, even until high school, I never really thought of it as a potential profession. I look at animations, animated series, movies, but you think that they exist, comic book artists, but you look at them as untouchables, a world that I can only see from afar. As technology progressed, social media came, those lines and boundaries began to disappear. You can get your art out there, and get it featured even.

Immediately after high school, there was no fine arts in my mind, never crossed my mind that I want to do it as a potential profession. So among the courses in college, I ended up in engineering and design, because of the fact that there is design involved. Then 2009 came, then fine arts opened. To say I was shocked and surprised, was an understatement cause I never really thought that there was fine arts in Silliman. So I had to make the hardest and biggest decision I ever made.

I was already contemplating while we were on a family vacation in May that year. When you travel, it makes you think about your life. I knew I was capable of finishing engineering, but my grades were mediocre, and that didn’t satisfy. Then somehow, life has a way of reminding you or telling you hints that one should go a certain way. I saw a documentary about ILM (Industrial Light and Magic), watched behind the scenes of The Lord of the Rings. Then I drew something for that year and got a lot of attention in Tumbler.  Then I thought, I can actually do this. Maybe there is a chance I can actually break into the industry but I need to have some sort of proper foundation since the skills I know are self-taught.

So when fine arts came around, I really thought to myself that, you have to make a leap of faith. I did what I did, not to spite my parents (out of rebellion) but it was more of ‘ I’m gonna do this because this is how I’m gonna make you proud.’ I know this is the only way I can succeed in life and that success will be all thanks to you guys. And that success I will offer to you.’ And eventually they grew to understand why this is so important to me as a person since I really can’t imagine myself doing anything else. Ana ra gyud na sya (And that is really it).

YMK: Then your journey from school to now?

XA: I never really identified myself as any kind of artist. While people look at my work and categorize me as a fantasy artist based on the stuff that I post online, I never really confined myself to that.

I can compare art school as a greenhouse. You are planted and nurtured there. The conditions are great with a “gardener” (teacher) that takes good care of you. And of course you can’t just grow and flourish there, you cannot spread your vines, branches in the greenhouse. So the gardener will eventually put you outside to flourish. After graduation, that was probably one of the scariest things that occurred to me.

            It took Xteve a year to realize many things. One of his mantra comes from Aragorn of J.R.R Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings who said “the swift of the stroke goes astray.” He didn’t want to hastily decide on his future. There were two significant events that happened in this year of contemplation. One is the seminar-like experience of Noah Bradley’s audiobook and the other one was the 1^st Visayas National Creative Congress in Bacolod City with resource speakers from the animation and gaming industry: Grace Dimaranan, Alvin Juban, Christopher Ruiz and Hiromichi Masuda. After this experience, he had three job opportunities. Although he passed on these chances, it led to the creation of a start-up company. Together with Edlyn Abrio and the full support of Xteve’s family, they decided to take that leap of faith and put up 13Headz Creative Studios.

Thunder VS Death. Featured at:
http://www.geek.com/news/exclusive-the-big-bad-of-thor-ragnarok-and-the-destruction-1645203/

My final question was “what drives you to do your art?” He said that there were three things that motivate him: family, the constant need to explore, criticism.

And there you have Xteve, the trailblazer, as described by one of his mentors, animator Ramon del Prado. Xteve’s artworks have been featured in Geektyrant, Geek.com, ComicbookMovie.com, Screenrant, Dorkly, Epicstream, etc and several online film mags from Italy, Portugal, and Spain.

For more works of Xteve, you may want to visit the following links:

http://xteveabanto.com

http://wizardontheprismtower.tumblr.com

http://xteveabanto.deviantart.com

http://13headz.com/#13h