Indiosyncracies
curated by Ming Fay
March 2 - April 7, 2012
Artist:
Curated by:
Ming Fay
Location:
Gallery 456
Exhibition Statement

The Philippines is a nation of contrasts whose history is carved by the ravages of colonialism and imperialist ambitions. It had established thriving trade and cultural exchange with the Middle East, South Asia, and China way before the arrival of its western colonizers. Thus the country has a curious blend of cultural diversity and rich traditions. Tolerance has been the hallmark of its people who are caught in the confusion of defining it sense of nationality and psychological identity amidst its colonial legacy from Spain, the United States and briefly, Japan. It is also a country with a long history of defiance and survival, and of a people who has embraced the concept of democracy ahead of its Asian neighbors from the revolt against Spain to the popular People Power Revolution which toppled the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos in 1986.

The Chinese American Art Council presents the works of two Filipino artists Toym Leon Imao and Lazaro Juan, whose visual response to concepts like benevolent assimilation and manifest destiny embodies their reaction to their country’s colonial past.

Indiosyncracies is born from the fusion of two ideas: Indio is a Spanish term used in the 16th -19th centuries to describe the native inhabitants of the Philippines. Idiosyncrasy is defined as a condition which signifies how an individual, reacts, perceives, and experiences a common situation; where it may incur a sense of nostalgic memory for one person and disgust in another.

Opening Reception

Friday, March 2nd, 2012, 6-8pm

Gallery 456
Coverage
艺术家眼中的菲律宾 纽约456画廊展出