The latest installation at the Ateneo Art Gallery will please both exhibit regulars and science-curious noobs. This time, it features artists Veronica Pee, IC Jaucian, and Derek Tumala—all of whom are shortlisted artists in this year’s Ateneo Art Awards. At last night’s Art Speak, we were schooled on the great many things that science and art can bring, some of which are the works presented here.
These artists are famous for their fascination with science. Since they dipped their toes in the art scene, they’ve been blurring the fine line between disciplines (that of their craft and its supposedly unrelated topic), always challenging the tastes of traditional collectors and a curious public.
Ian is evidently preoccupied with kinetics, and the most childish ideas for concrete solutions that, he thinks, can help us survive in our own little worlds. Bold and playful, his structures are his wild propositions for solving issues like poverty and pollution.
Derek, on the other hand, juxtaposes hard technology with the abstract notion of spirituality. His work Sacred Geometry shows how religious infrastructures are designed in a way that’s motivated by nature’s forms and patterns.
Meanwhile, Veronica is a naturalist who admits to drawing inspiration and collecting objects from nature. For her, looking to science can also inspire self-reflection. Veronica’s very first solo show Pocket Universe alludes to her other interests like astronomy and biology through microscopic images.
“Technology is not separate from art,” shares Derek. And looking at all these, we can’t help but agree.
The 2015 Ateneo Art Awards exhibition runs until Dec. 5 at the Ateneo Art Gallery at G/F Rizal Library, University Road, Ateneo de Manila University, Katipunan Avenue, Quezon City. Museum hours are Mondays to Fridays, 8:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Click through the slideshow above to see their works!
Photos by Gian Cruz
