A new generation has become engaged by the possibilities of finding up-and-coming Filipino artists through different platforms. With the presence of exhibits, digital auctions and even instagram, where does one start? Bluprint correspondent Daniel Lampa, an entrepreneur who considers Manila and Los Angeles his home and spends a lot of his time in galleries and museums,shares his top picks of the most promising artists in the country.
Cedrick Dela Paz
Cedrick Dela Paz was born in 1995 and studied Visual Communication, majoring in Fine Arts at Eulogio Amang Rodriguez Institute of Science and Technology.
He has been joining art competitions since 2018 and would always end up as a finalist. In 2019, He joined MADE or the Metrobank Art and Design Excellence and won a Special Citation award. In the same year, he had his first solo show at a gallery in Makati. Cedrick, whose main medium is Acrylic and polyptych, continues to be a member of an Artist Collective called Door 305. He is well-versed in images that have social commentary and is known for his usually formed projects that are based on people’s real figures.
Ayka Go
Born in 1993, Ayka Go graduated from the University of the Philippines in Diliman.
She’s had solo exhibits in noteworthy galleries such as Finale Art File, West Gallery, and Underground Gallery. She has also been part of group exhibitions at Ayala Museum, Kaida Contemporary, West Gallery, Finale Art File, Blanc Gallery, and had a solo show under Finale Gallery at Paris for “Asia now Paris” back in 2018. Her usual paintings depict brightly colored paper that are folded, crumpled, and sometimes torn. She is set to have a solo exhibit on June 17 at the Finale Art File Gallery in Makati called “some things we call home”.
Chelsea Theodossis
Twenty-Nine-year-old Chelsea Theodossis graduated from Centro Escolar University (CEU). She started to use oil paint when she was 12 and started to take it seriously when she was 24.
Her works are easily recognizable with her limited color palette which a lot of art collectors adore. These paintings are usually of normal items that a person encounters in their daily lives like books, a rubber band, a leaf, a sheet of paper, or a pencil that are shown with dramatic lighting.
She’s had exhibits at Provenance Art Gallery, Finale Art File Gallery, The Metro Gallery, and Ysobel Art Gallery where she had her first solo exhibit back in 2020 called “Home Of Unknown Tales”. Her next exhibit will be in the last quarter of 2021. It will be a group show, a part of the START Art Fair, Saatchi London under One East Asia. She will also be part of ManilaArt this year under Ysobel Art Gallery.
Isko Andrade
Born in 1996, Isko Andrade graduated from Bulacan State University with a degree in Fine Arts Major in Visual Communication in 2017.
Even before high school, Isko already started joining art contests and received a lot of awards for his photorealistic artworks. In the 2015 Philippine National Oil Company Art Awards, he won the grand prize for the oil on canvas category. At the Metrobank Art Awards in 2018, he received a special citation. Before an exhibit or a show, he would ask for the gallery’s layout or would do an ocular visit so he can base the size of his works on the size of the gallery.
For “Pamilya”, a solo show he presented at the Yuchengco Museum earlier this year, Andrade used his signature photorealistic technique to show his family members’ resilience. Isko, the only male member of their household, showed the untold stories of the women in his life through oil on canvas. Isko will have his third solo show this coming September at the Art Cube Gallery in Makati.
Jomari T’leon
Jomari, born in 1998, received his Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Arts from the Technological University of the Philipines where he started seriously practicing the art of painting. Jomari, whose influences are mostly contemporary Filipino and European artists, says most of his works examine the complex idea of existence and mortality.
His exhibited works may be found in the following galleries: Mono8 Gallery, Blanc Gallery, Village Art Gallery, Nova Gallery, and Art for Space Gallery. His two-man show this coming July at Blanc Gallery in Quezon City, is something to watch out for.
Notes about the Contributor
Daniel Lampa
Art enthusiast and into Fashion, French Culture, Mid-century modern design and spends a lot of his time curating his home in Manila and LA. He lives with his 3 dogs, Coco, Yohji and Junya.
