MANILA, Philippines -- ''In the eyes of an artist, an empty canvas represents potential; the possibility to create. It is the media on which the artist, responding to an internal passion and responsibility, [captures] a sliver of a nation's history or a country's emotional undercurrent.''
Metrobank Foundation Inc. president Aniceto M. Sobrepena declared these words as the foundation held the awarding rites of its annual art and design competition, dubbed Metrobank Art & Design Excellence (MADE) 2011, recently at Le Pavilion in Pasay City.
On its 27th year, MADE is a pioneer art competition which aims to discover young and talented artists and designers and help them launch and enhance their artistic careers. Since 1984, MADE has attained pivotal milestones in broadening the reach of the art competition and intensifying its position in the field of Philippine art education.
''When Metrobank launched its art and design competition in 1984, we were looking at the country and the youth as an empty canvas which is ripe with possibilities. More than just a venue to discover young artists, it has served as the means from which the creativity of the country finds its expression,'' says Sobrepena.
Since then, it has formalized its art grants program, operating under the IDEA Framework - prioritizing grants that provides Inspiration, encourages Development, Exposes talents in several venues, and art Applications in various industries.
This year, as the foundation realizes the essential role of designers and architects in shaping living spaces, MADE launched its long-term advocacy, ''Your environment shapes you,'' to foster holistic artistic growth in a sustainable and creative environment.
Metrobank Foundation celebrated the new batch of young and talented artists and designers who would join its stellar rosters of winners. Eleven artists and designers made it to this year's list.
In the painting (oil/acrylic) category, 35-year-old artist Jericho Valjusto Vamenta took home the grand prize with his painting ''Ang Mrs. Eden Maleta sa Mundo ni Tatang Danilo.'' As social realism, the piece focuses on the issue of the working woman and man as a ''houseband.'' Rendered in the graphic convention of reverse coloring, the artwork conjures a classic scene filled with gender tension between inseparable lovers: Eden Maleta caught in a frozen action as she took off her working clothes, denoting her dominance as the breadwinner, while Tatang Danilo meekly followed while eating an apple, symbolizing the his dependence on his paramour.
Bulacan-based artist Alexander Roxas's ''Uncorrupted'' artwork won the second prize. Utilizing the traditional figurative allegory in a photo-realistic style, ''Uncorrupted'' shows a boy wearing a cape that denotes hope. The artwork dwells on the contemporary dilemmas of confronting and transforming the social malaise of crime, corruption, and wanton violence though the faith of the youth.
Fine arts student Julmard Vicente summarized the flesh trade among the youth in ''Prosti-tuition,'' which won third place. The artist played with the words prostitution and tuition as a reflection of the reality that some students go into prostitution to earn money and pay their tuition fees. With its brutal economy of imagery, the piece showed the monumental body of a nude young woman -- frontally, shrink-wrapped like a piece of frozen meat on sale at a supermarket, marked with a barcode that denotes her status as student prostitute.
Tarlac-based artist Chrisanto Aquino reflects on the environmental catastrophe caused by the society's dependence on petroleum in his artwork ''Oil's Kill,'' which was the grand prize winner in the painting (water media on paper) category. Industrial progress vs. habitat destruction, motorized speed vs. pollution, and the poisoning of the Earth for the profit of oil companies and stockholders -- the setting for this drama is within a fantastic Coliseum-like ruin.''It is all about taking care of the Earth. People should know that the world won't spin forever. Everything has an end,'' says the artist.
A special prize was given to artist Eduardo Santos, Jr. for his painting ''Hierarchy,'' which exploits the fates of people in power. Replete with symbolisms, the piece depicts chairs as metaphors of power. The canvas is divided into two panels: one panel ha elegantly-constructed chairs floating through an ambivalent curtain of gray and muted colors; while the other shows chairs upended, crashing towards oblivion as their sitters tumble from grace.
''Walang Pinanghahawakang Anuman sa Palad,'' the grand prize winner in the sculpture category, takes a philosophical look at the nature of materiality and human happiness using the metaphor of human hand. ''We are born without anything in our hands, and even in death, we cannot bring our possessions. We don't possess anything, thus we should enjoy life and be happy with whatever life gives us,'' says architect Jonathan Dangue, who used bamboo sticks, toothpicks and wood for his winning sculpture.
''Control Freak,'' the special prize awardee, is prompted by artist Van Cleef Emnacen's realization that modern technology and the industries that created it control consumers. A social commentary on the potency of consumer culture, the artwork exemplifies the artist's admiration for his co-artists who design science fiction environments, their characters and special effects.
Interior designer Angelo Venci del Mundo, the grand prize winner in the interior design category, channeled the abstract designs of Western and Japanese architects like Frank Gehry and Tadao Ando to create his winning entry. The design features a bespoke dining table and sofa using laminated bamboo, with re-appropriated Chinese furniture painted in a minimalist black, giving an Asian silhouette. The floor is wood parquet in white-wash finish, providing a contrast to the furniture. Finishing the look are sea grass rug, bamboo shades and second-hand furniture pieces.
UP-Diliman interior design graduate Childy Ramos Elamparo recreates the comforts of the country in the city through her design concept, ''Urbanized Filipino Bukid Living.'' She utilizes bamboo and rattan, as well as the shades of the sun and the earth to color and accessorize with. The furniture has a Tuscan-Asian-modern vibe that complements the overall theme. Storage solution is also central to her design, reducing clutter and raising efficiency in the use of limited space through right storage designs.
For the architecture category, Arch. Oscar Penasales acknowledges the compatibility of the basic approach of houses on stilts in a Philippine setting of undulating terrain and wetlands. A glorification of the lean-to-dwelling, he starts by traditionally elevating the main living spaces above an open space meant for future expansion. He embedded in the design the integration of rainwater storage for daily requirements. His architecture revolves in the wisdom of design with and not against nature.
The foundation also awarded its first Metrobank Foundation Prize for Achievement in Sculpture (MPAS) to sculptor Priscillano ''Jun'' Vicaldo. An apprentice of National Artists Napoleon Abueva and Jose Joya, Vicaldo is known for his sculptures depicting human form in balance and gymnastics positions. With the touches of Greek aesthetics, his ''bodies'' seem to be in motion putting emphasis on the muscular stretches and poses that captures the curves of the human form. The sculptor aims to sustain the fading artistry of the aesthetic human form amidst the emergence of new styles and mediums in sculpture.
