Recently, tastemakers Raul Francisco and Joanna Preysler-Francisco invited people from different lifestyles to curate the booths that make up the power cast art exhibition located in Paseo de Magallanes Commercial Center. Seventy-five contemporary artists and collaborators come together to elevate art experience for 8ROOMS Creative Space. Here, Bluprint highlights four of the most brilliant booth curators of the event.

Ram Lopez-Vito Bucoy II. Ram is an Interior Decorator and the founder of Casa Buddha. His 15-year career in Marketing and PR paves the way for his style development. His tone mixes traditional modern with chinoiserie and identifies himself as a maximalist. Ram characterizes his booth as sexy, fun, and statement. The space that he curated for 8ROOMS gets inspiration from a “parlor in Paris”, it exudes a very chic vibe with the raspberry fuschia painted walls. True to his signature style, it is a mix of contemporary and antique pieces. “A juxtaposition of all the new” as Ram describes it. When asked about his favorite piece in the room, he points to the artwork by Bambina Jacinto. To him, it is a conversation piece and the striking orange hue makes it a nice wall statement.

Tania Fricke-Lichauco. Tania works as a lifestyle consultant that specializes in home decoration, curating art pieces, and everything related to beautifying a space. In addition, her passion for design and aesthetics starts out as a hobby she does for friends which then turns into something professional. She considers every project as a new adventure and making her clients feel her love is the end goal. Tania finds fulfillment in the positive feedback that she gets after every project turnover and it drives her to keep doing better.

Her 8ROOMS booth which she describes as the sea, jewels, and beyond takes inspiration from the ocean. She expresses herself as a beach girl who craves the ocean whenever she needs to think or reboot. The pawikan or the turtle is her favorite item in the room. It is a sentimental piece from South America given to her by her father some decades ago. The turtle starts out the booth curation and everything came together beautifully thereafter.

Monchet Diokno Olives. Popularly known as “The Fan Man”, Monchet is a heritage fan maker and also a very notable figure in the art and design scene. He finds luxury in simplicity and this is exactly what his booth exemplifies. Inspired by fans, the whole concept of his booth takes on the Victorian era where fan language is very important. He explains that a fan does many faces, it could express the emotion in more ways than one. This is also the reason why the choices of art pieces in his booth are all portraits. He claims that the blindfolded portraits of a king and a queen are his favorite pieces. He describes it as the most striking, and to him, it is a political statement more than an art piece. He explains that the king and the queen should see the reality of what is happening. He goes for something a bit radical and chronicles his booth as such.

Dr. Alex Ayco. A very private man and a respected doctor, Dr. Alex Ayco is also a passionate artist. He curates, designs, collects art pieces, and puts emphasis on preserving historical art objects. His 8ROOMS booth gives off a very traditional vibe. It is a collection of head sculptures, hand paintings, and antique pieces. There is a handblown glassware piece created in the 1950s which he recalls as the peaceful years. Moreover, another 1920s sterling silver glass is also present in his room. He wants to create a happy space that would spark memories like walking into your grandmother’s ancestral house. Dr. Ayco wants people to remember the past and be reminded how craftsmen then prioritize hard work rather than convenience.

8ROOMS Creative Space is located on the 2nd Floor of South Park Plaza Bldg, Paseo de Magallanes Commercial Center, Makati City.

Photo credits: Ed Simon