20 Years of Galerie Joaquin
After two decades, Galerie Joaquin has evolved through the serendipitous growth of friendships and creative systems.
Written by Maia San Diego
June 15, 2023
This year, Galerie Joaquin celebrates its 20th year in the Philippine art industry. It marks two decades of cultivating and promoting Philippine art to the local community and the international stage. A marriage of elegance and modern art, Galerie Joaquin has consistently provided an effective platform for masters and fresh talent.
Keeping a strong foothold in the Philippine art community is not a walk in the park. What are the secrets to keeping an art gallery standing strong for 20 years and counting?
As Managing Director of the Galerie Joaquin Group, Joaquin “Jack” Teotico had to put in years of work to get the gallery to where it is today. Galerie Joaquin was established in 2002. Back then, there were not as many art galleries in the Philippines as there are presently. Serendipity played a part—and it seems everything happened in the right place at the right time.
Jack Teotico is a graduate of Business Economics from the University of the Philippines in Diliman. How did he develop an affinity for the arts? During his time in UP, Teotico was fortunate to be taught by a good Humanities professor—writer and poet Virginia Moreno, who was also the sister of fashion designer Pitoy Moreno. Teotico recalls how she had a flair for making art interesting and exciting, which indelibly piqued his interest in art. Later on, his work with the Department of Agriculture allowed him to travel to different capitals in the world as he represented the Philippine government in international negotiations for hard fibers (abaca, piña, ramie, and maguey, among others). In his free time during work trips, Teotico took the opportunity to visit some of the best museums in the world.
With his renewed interest in visual arts, an instance of serendipity took place one weekend in the early 80s. Teotico chanced upon an art gallery in Makati and witnessed a group of people who seemed to be good friends happily drawing and sketching in each other’s company. This spurred an excitement in him, which urged him to come back the next Saturday, and the next and the next. This group of friends were the Saturday Group of Artists. Headed by soon-to-be National Artist Cesar Legaspi, they included future National Artists Ang Kiukok, BenCab, Presidential Medal of Merit Awardee Juvenal Sansó, Onib Olmedo, Ed Castrillo, and Mauro Malang Santos, to name a few. Though he described himself as a hobbyist, Teotico was surprised and honored to be invited by Cesar Legaspi to be part of the Saturday Group. Over time, he would develop a strong relationship with the group and forge a long-lasting friendship with renowned artist Juvenal Sansó.
Teotico retired after serving 25 years with the Department of Agriculture. He thought of starting a business but was hesitant at first to open his own gallery due to overhead costs and the fact that he was still learning the ropes. He had previously invested in an art space called Ad Infinitum with two partners—Ed Soler and Noli Romero. Striking out on his own and setting up his gallery was a leap of faith.
A friend suggested an available space along P. Guevarra Street in San Juan. Artist friends helped Teotico come up with the name and logo for his gallery. None other than internationally renowned artist Raul Lebajo suggested the name because he said the owner of the gallery would be the one to set the direction for the gallery as its director, so why not name it Galerie Joaquin? They went with the French word ‘galerie’ to set it apart from the other galleries. Artist Edwin Tres Reyes came up with the easel logo for the gallery. And the rest is history.
It would be an understatement to say that Jack Teotico loves art. He is passionate about it to say the least. He enjoys the ins and outs of the art industry, and it keeps him totally energized. He shares a lesson: “Try to find a job that makes you happy. Do not stay in a job where you have to drag yourself out of bed every morning to go to work. If you like what you are doing then it won’t feel like work, but be more like fun. It is easier to find more energy, more inspiration, and find better ways to improve what you are doing when you are having fun.” For Jack Teotico, art is a “big thrill” and it gives him both emotional and intellectual satisfaction.
Teotico would later on decide it would be time for an expansion for Galerie Joaquin. Due to the P. Guevarra location getting very few walk-ins at the time, a second branch for Galerie Joaquin was set up at The Podium mall in Ortigas. They also opened Galerie Raphael with new partners in Serendra, securing a location in BGC. Another partnership was forged with friend Susanne Tiausas, the wife of acclaimed abstract artist Carlo Magno, and together they put up the first Galerie Francesca at Festival Mall Alabang.
Around 2008, more galleries were moving to independent locations, away from the malls. Galerie Joaquin went in a completely different direction and remained true to their philosophy of providing an elegant art space where clients can have the convenience of options. There are advantages to having an art gallery in a commercial mall as clients have the convenience of access to parking spaces, as well as restaurants, retail stores, and all sorts of entertainment before or after an exhibition.
“Try to find a job that makes you happy. Do not stay in a job where you have to drag yourself out of bed every morning to go to work. If you like what you are doing then it won’t feel like work, but be more like fun. It is easier to find more energy, more inspiration, and find better ways to improve what you are doing when you are having fun.”
The Galerie Joaquin Group now has quite a number of branches, including ones in upscale BGC, Rockwell, and Greenbelt 5. Galerie Joaquin would also expand into having sister gallery relationships with contemporary art galleries such as Galerie Stephanie and Art Underground.
The sister companies have their own identity and brand, and their own managing directors—Susanne Tiausas (Galerie Francesca Group), Nico Teotico (Art Underground), and Abby Frias Teotico (Galerie Stephanie). Art Underground focuses on more contemporary Filipino artists. Galerie Stephanie works with international artists. The various gallery groups have their own roster of artists, with Galerie Joaquin focused on Modernist and fine art traditions.
Teotico was the first among Filipino gallerists to introduce Philippine art and artists to the global stage. In December 2006, Galerie Joaquin set up shop in Singapore with a British partner and Managing Director at the prestigious Regent of Singapore in Cuscaden Road. Singapore then was becoming a major art hub in Asia. Many other Philippine-based galleries followed suit and would open in Singapore as well.
In the group, it was Galerie Joaquin that spearheaded the effort to join international art fairs and present a strong Philippine lineup of artists. It joined Art Singapore, CIGE BEIJING, Art Taipei, Art Expo Malaysia, Bazaar Art Jakarta, among others. In the latter years, Galerie Stephanie and Art Underground would take up the banner for the group, joining Art Fair Tokyo, KIAF Seoul, Art Central, and Art Busan. Next year though, Teotico intends to bring Galerie Joaquin artists once more to the global arena by opening up an art gallery in Madrid and hopefully in one or two more cities in other major capitals.
The gallery places great value on all of its relationships with artists. Teotico deems Juvenal Sansó as a genius who has taught him plenty interms of artistry and marketing savvy. He feels utmost gratitude for all the lessons imparted by the artist. Since 2003 or for the past two decades now, Sansó is known to have had his one-man shows only with the Galerie Joaquin Group. In fact, working with Sansó has helped bring many important artists to work with Galerie Joaquin.
Through the years, Galerie Joaquin would hold significant exhibitions for big names in the industry. They have done seven of National Artist Arturo Luz’s major one-man shows. Seven of National Artist Federico Aguilar Alcuaz’s major shows, as well as the penultimate shows of National Artist Abdulmari Imao.
Working with Dominic Rubio, Mario Parial, Ed Castrillo, Michael Cacnio, and Justin Nuyda have also been part of Galerie Joaquin’s key highlights over the years. Ramon Orlina has also been a big part of the gallery’s growth. In fact, it was because of Orlina’s support that the Modern and Contemporary Art Festival (MoCAF), a project strongly supported by the Galerie Joaquin Group and Art+ Magazine, became a success. Serendipitously, everything seems to have happened in the right place at the right time.
There are moments when Teotico still finds it surreal to see how far they’ve come. In recognizing the gallery’s longevity and success, Teotico gives credit to the entire team behind the Galerie Joaquin Group including the strong lineup of artists, as well as the people working behind the scenes. Teotico can only express unmitigated gratitude. He considers people to be the gallery’s major asset, as Galerie Joaquin draws its strength and power from these individuals.
For 20 years, Galerie Joaquin has been putting the spotlight on masters of Philippine art as well as outstanding and emerging Filipino talents of today. Jack Teotico has found his passion, he is grateful, and he continues to share the blessings he has received. It has been a quick 20 years, and if plans fall into place, they are gearing up for the next 20 years. Time sure flies when you have found your passion and are having fun.
