Shifting Reality at Galerie Stephanie marks the inaugural exhibition of sculpturist Michael Orlina. The son of famed glass sculpturist Ramon Orlina, Michael has also adopted glass as his medium of choice for self-expression.
The artist seems to be building upon the ideas of the original master, finding new permutations of glass as artistry for a new generation of audiences. His works find a compelling youthful energy in them, seeking something dramatically transformative in approach and output.
“[The exhibit] showcases Orlina’s ongoing exploration of glass, delving into its inherent mutability through meticulous coldworking techniques,” the exhibit write-up said. “Orlina’s unique approach highlights the reflective, refractive, and dynamic qualities of glass, creating a visual experience that challenges perceptions and invites contemplation.”
For his first exhibition, Michael Orlina works to differentiate himself from his father through a distinctiveness of technique. He said that he and his sister Anna were sent abroad by their father to learn new approaches to glass art that both of them are currently adopting for their work.
“He sent me and my sister to the US to explore and see what glass is also like outside the Philippines and what they do,” he said. “Kasi sa US meron silang glass blowing, kiln working, flame working, [and] cold-working as well. And what we were exposed to in the US, which was, also the school [that] attracts people from all over the world.”
This exposure broadened both of their perspectives to the possibility of the form, and Orlina said that it made him curious as to how far he can take these techniques and implement them into his own work.
His methodology for this exhibit is cold-working, which are methods where you alter the state of glass after the material has cooled. Procedures like sandblasting, etching, engraving, and other methods would fall under this. Even with that in mind, Orlina still feels compelled to appropriate the other methods that he learned in time.
“[These methods were] also a really big inspiration in seeing all of the different ways people work with glass and the possibilities that me and my sister can do,” he shared. “In the US, we saw so many more possibilities. So eventually we want to explore those things as well and try different techniques now.”
Shifting Glass alludes to some of Orlina’s influences, mainly science fiction and pop culture. Even to the untrained eye, some of these artworks have a familiar feeling to them, as Orlina uses colors and motifs with the intention of calling back to those futuristic ideas from the past.
The most prominent and eye-catching sculpture is this rocket-shaped piece with a circle in the center. It utilizes this utopian color scheme of green, yellow, and cyan to create a luminous Star Trek-esque object for the exhibition.
Others are less explicit in that influence, but they still show: some artworks here seem to use comic book architecture reminiscent of Superman’s Fortress of Solitude in . The whole exhibit, really, works to evoke that clean, crystal-based technology that science fiction seems to adore.
“I like themes of pop culture in a way,” Michael Orlina shared. “And it somehow connects also to my ‘shifting reality’ title where things are out of this world. And using the properties of the glass, the magic of the glass, na may refraction, may reflection, nagiiba din ang mga shapes: those are the themes I wanted to put with the glass [because it’s] inherent [within] it.”
With Shifting Reality, Michael Orlina challenges the immutability of glass. His artistry focuses on change, on how the glass reflects the way ideas shift and move from beyond ourselves. And as he moves forward with his practice, he hopes to explore that even further with his future endeavors and exhibitions.
“With this texture, as you move around [the glass] shifts, it changes,” he said. “And that’s what I really love about the glass, […] that’s its magic. Not everything is fully polished na makintab at maliwanag and see through na see through. There’s also a play in opacity that gives [it] more dimension and more depth.”
Photos by Elle Yap.
Related reading: “Visions in Glass” Celebrates the Unique Artistry of Ramon Orlina
“Shifting Reality” marks the solo debut of Michael Orlina, son of the renowned glass sculptor Ramon Orlina. The exhibition showcases Michael’s unique artistic voice, blending youthful energy with advanced glass-working techniques to explore the material’s mutability. By focusing on how glass reflects and refracts light, the show invites viewers to experience a “shifting” visual reality that differentiates his contemporary style from the established traditions of his father.
While he honors his heritage, Michael utilizes “cold-working” techniques learned during his studies in the United States to distinguish his work. Cold-working involves altering the glass after it has cooled through methods like sandblasting, etching, engraving, and grinding. This allows him to play with varying levels of opacity and texture rather than relying solely on high-polish finishes, adding a unique sense of dimension and depth to his sculptures.
Michael Orlina draws heavy inspiration from futuristic motifs and utopian aesthetics found in science fiction and comic books. For instance, several pieces evoke the “Star Trek” aesthetic or the crystalline architecture of Superman’s Fortress of Solitude. He uses these pop culture themes to complement the “magical” properties of glass, such as its natural refraction and reflection, to create objects that feel like they belong to another world.
Michael and his sister Anna were sent to the US by their father to explore global glass-making methods, including glass blowing, kiln working, and flame working. This exposure broadened his perspective beyond the techniques common in the Philippines, inspiring him to push the boundaries of what is possible with the medium. While his current exhibit focuses on cold-working, his international training has sparked a desire to incorporate more experimental methods in his future collections.
To Michael Orlina, the “magic” lies in the inherent ability of glass to change and shift based on the viewer’s perspective and the surrounding light. By manipulating the glass to feature both clear and opaque surfaces, he creates a dynamic interplay where shapes appear to move and transform. This focus on “shifting reality” ensures that his sculptures are never static, but rather evolving pieces of art that offer a different experience from every angle.
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