“Art is by itself, a social commentary that
can be used to lift consciousness of the current situation,” Macarambon said.
Macarambon wished to see new names
from Cagayan de Oro that will join the awards. “That way, we can see growth in
the art scenes and we can see the direction of the art here in our city.”
Rhyan Casino, regional coordinator of
the National Commission for the Culture and the Arts (NCCA), said that with the
number of Mindanao artists joining the award, it came to the fore the need to
map artists and create a database.
Such database can be use to promote
art advocacy and empowerment of artists and strengthen arts in the region.
Savior pointed out that artists work
outside the traditional work model and have little social coverage.
“It is imperative that artists will
coalesce to form a stronger bargaining position for their work. That way, art
is not given almost at a bargain,” Savior said.
The Philippine Art Awards is a prime
venue for artists wanting to get to the national level and reach the
consciousness of art collectors.
Jake Vamenta said that with his
winning piece, Manila art connoisseurs took notice of the artists from Cagayan
de Oro.
“We have Balcos, Ramos, Gomez, Louie
Ano-os, among others who are making names in Manila. We have a very active art
scene and this empowers every artist in the city to create more work,” Vamenta
said.
Vamenta added that artists like him
do a lot of work. “Create more work, the more we create, the more we get
creative and the more our work gets better.”
Vamenta won a total of P390,000 for
his entry and it was sold in an undisclosed amount to a private collector.
Mariano said the juror’s choice award
of excellence will receive P120,000 each and the juror’s choice award for merit
will get P80,000 each.
The winners will also receive a
trophy, and a work of art from national artist Ben Cabrera.
The PAA, a visual arts competition,
aims at supporting the development of Philippine contemporary art and
increasing the national and regional exposure for Philippine art and artist.
It also encourages, inspires and
rewards creative works by contemporary Philippine artist, with the intent to
nurture their talents and provide a platform for established and emerging
Philippine artists and their works to be recognized through exhibits and allow
ample cross-cultural exposure.
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