Art Fair Philippines goes back to The Link for its 10th anniversary.

Photos provided by Art Fair Philippines
March 15, 2023

Art Fair Philippines celebrated 10 years of expanding the Philippine audience for contemporary art. It continued to shine the spotlight on one of Southeast Asia’s most exciting art landscapes. After three years, Art Fair Philippines 2023 once again transformed The Link carpark in Makati City into a multi-level art exhibition venue from February 17 to 19. 

This year’s edition featured a new biophilic design to give fairgoers a refreshed experience of the fair in an organically designed setting, enhancing the spirit of discovery and surprise while exploring the fair. 

Line-up of exhibitors at Art Fair Philippines 2023

(from left; Art Cube Gallery, Tarzeer Pictures, and La Lanta Fine Art)

This year, Art Fair Philippines welcomed 63 exhibitors from the Philippines and overseas. The participating exhibitors from the Philippines were: 1335/Mabini, Anakbanwa Creative Residency Project, Art Cube, Art Elaan, Art for Space, Art Lounge Manila, Art Underground, Art Verité, Artery Art Space, Boston Art Gallery, Canvas, Early Light, Fifth Wall Fest, FotomotoPH, Galeria Paloma, Galerie Stephanie, Gravity Art Space, isTorya Studios, J Studio, Jes Aznar, Kaida Contemporary, KalawakanSpacetime, Kantina, Kapitan Kulam, León Gallery, Lunang Mentoring Program, Mark Lewis Higgins, Metro Gallery, Mono8, Mugna Gallery + Foundation University DAFA, no space, Orange Project, Paint Bukog, Paseo Art Gallery, Pintô Art Museum, Qube Gallery, Secret Fresh Gallery, Silverlens, Sitting Room Studios, Sulyap Gallery by Tahanan Pottery, Super Duper Gallery, Tarzeer Pictures, The Crucible, Tom Epperson, Triangulum, Tin-aw Art Projects, Village Art Gallery, White Walls Gallery, and Ysobel Art Gallery.

The Philippines’ leading galleries were joined by a wider roster of foreign galleries including Art Agenda (Singapore and Jakarta), Artemis Art (Malaysia), Gallery Kogure (Japan), Kobayashi Gallery (Japan), Cayón (Spain), Gallery Scena (Japan), La Lanta Fine Art (Thailand), Nunu Fine Art (Taiwan), Gajah Gallery (Singapore), Vin Gallery (Vietnam), Yavuz Gallery (Singapore and Australia), and YOD Gallery (Japan). 

Several art groups from the three main island clusters of the Philippines also joined the fair for a section that provided regional focus. These exhibitors were: no space (Luzon), Orange Project (Visayas), and Panit Bukog (Mindanao).

Art FairPH/ Digital

Art Fair Philippines introduced a new section that focused on digital media, work that incorporates and engages with computer technology, animation, virtual or augmented reality, the metaverse, and Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs). 

The section highlighted two special exhibits featuring Filipino digital artists making waves in the global digital art sphere. New York-based Skye Nicolas presented Frequencies of Nostalgia, while Mark Inducil, who currently lives and works in Melbourne, mounted Homecoming.   

These special exhibits were curated by CryptoArtPH artists Bjorn Calleja and Jopet Arias. ArtFairPH/ Digital was co-presented by Globe Platinum.

ArtFairPH/Projects and ArtFairPH/Photo Special Exhibits

From top left, clockwise: Faye Abantao, Kiko Escora, Mark Andy Garcia, Peter Zimmerman, Pow Martinez, Raymond Guevara, Rosario Bitanga, Wawi Navarroza, Yeo Kaa, Yunizar

One highlight of the fair, ArtFairPH/Projects, showcased work commissioned especially for the fair from artists who have made an impact both critically and commercially. For this year, Art Fair Philippines worked once again with art consultant Norman Crisologo. 

Co-presented by BPI and located at The Link’s Roof Deck, artists mounting special exhibits included Faye Abantao, Kiko Escora, Mark Andy Garcia, Raymond Guevarra, Pow Martinez, Yeo Kaa, and Peter Zimmerman. “BPI sees the works of these talented artists not only as cultural expressions but also as art forms for investing in the future. Art is also a means to immortalize an idea that defines a generation. It is history in the making,” said Jenny Lacerna, BPI Product & Sales Head of Unsecured Lending and Cards.

Photographer Wawi Navarroza’s series of striking self-portraits, which also feature in a current survey of Southeast Asian photography at the National Gallery of Singapore, came together for As Wild As We Come for this year’s ArtFairPH/Photo section.  

Other special projects for the fair were a special exhibition by Indonesian artist Yunizar, with YUNIZAR: New Perspectives, and works by German painter, sculptor and object artist Peter Zimmerman. 

Pioneering female abstractionist, Rosario Bitanga, who, in her 80s, still practices her art, also showcased both old and new work in a show titled Rosario Bitanga: Past, Present, Participant, curated by architect and art consultant Miguel Rosales.  

Tributes

This year, the fair paid tribute to two art world personalities, Norma Liongoren (Liongoren Gallery), and Albert Avellana (Avellana Art Gallery), who had recently passed away, leaving their mark on the local art scene with the ground-breaking work of their galleries. 

ArtFairPH/Residencies

The fair exhibited works from this year’s batch of artists who have completed artist residencies in various parts of the country: IC Jaucian for Manila Observatory, Nicolei Gupit for Linangan Art Residency, Aaron Kaiser Garcia for Emerging Islands, ESL Chen and Jonathan Baldonado for Orange Project, and James Clar for Butanding Barrio. Launched in 2021 in partnership with Bleeding Heart Rum Corporation, makers of Don Papa Rum, ArtFairPH/Residencies is open to all Filipino artists across all disciplines. 

Learning at #ArtFairPH

ArtFairPH/Talks provided fair visitors opportunities to deepen their exposure to various topics that will enhance art appreciation.

ArtFairPH/Talks, created in partnership with the Ateneo Art Gallery and Museum Foundation of the Philippines, continued to offer learning opportunities for Art Fair Philippines visitors with a variety of lectures, panel discussions, and artist talks.  

Augmenting the learning opportunities at the fair was ArtFairPH/Workshops, which focused this year on digital art, organized with educational partner Tezos and its Asian arm, TZAPAC. Attendees to their workshops found out how to onboard as a digital artist and learned more about our local crypto art scene.  

ArtFairPH/Film

Art Fair Philippines 2023 also continued to present ArtFairPH/Film. The Ateneo Art Gallery curated this year’s program with two evenings of compelling selections. 

In Alternative Cinema: History, Theory and Practice, renowned filmmaker and film historian Nick Deocampo presented an overview of the development of alternative cinema in the Philippines. The second night of screenings featured a selection of lumbung films, featured in DOCUMENTA 15 in Kassel, Germany. The lineup for the second film evening was co-organized with Resbak and Lost Frames. 

10 Days of Art and the Gallery Weekend

Also complementing the fair was the 10 Days of Art initiative, running from February 10 to 19. This series of events around the Makati Central Business District, with participation by galleries, museums, bars, restaurants, and retail establishments, celebrated art beyond the venue of the fair. 

Gallery Weekend, from February 10 to 12, kicked off 10 Days of Art. Visitors were encouraged to go and see the gallery exhibitions at their respective locations throughout this three-day effort.

For more information, please visit the Art Fair Philippines website and follow Art Fair Philippines on Instagram (@artfairph) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/artfairph).

Art Fair Philippines 2023 was co-presented by AyalaLand, Bank of the Philippine Islands, and Globe Platinum, with special project partner Don Papa Rum. The fair was also sponsored by Rizome. Its official hotel partners were Fairmont and Raffles Makati, and Holiday Inn and Suites.