Going with the Flow with Katrina Cuenca
Ahead of her special exhibition in this year’s MoCAF, Katrina Cuenca shares her thoughts on the Filipino art scene and the prospect of translating experience into her works.
Words Mika Geronimo
Photography Gail Geriane
June 25, 2024
Self-taught painter and sculptor Katrina Cuenca has quite a hectic few months ahead of her.
Fresh off her participation in Galerie Stephanie’s Horizons Apart exhibit at Art Busan 2024, as well as a wearable art collection alongside apparel brand Kamiseta, Cuenca’s collaboration with furniture store CWC Interiors is also on the horizon.
With one more appearance up her sleeve, we caught up with Cuenca ahead of her special exhibition at this year’s Modern and Contemporary Arts Festival.
Matched with the excitement for what’s to come in her own career, Cuenca also finds herself equally jazzed for the Filipino art scene and its up-and-coming talent. Whether it's music or visual art, there is indeed no shortage of talent when discussing the extent of Filipino creativity.
After almost a decade of immersing herself in the industry and with the lockdown slowly clearing over the past few years, Cuenca cites that Filipino art is having its moment, calling it “an exciting time.”
An abstract artist herself, Cuenca tells budding artists that experimentation is what breathes life into the art scene today, contributing unique and diverse voices to the foray: “Because for me, art tells a story of the culture – the zeitgeist of our generation. It’s exciting to see that always.”
For her, local art has a particular brand of experimentation and pride rooted in the Filipino identity. That culture is simultaneously defined by and is defining our art.
“Maybe 20… 50 years from now when we look back and try to figure out what was the Philippines like, or what was the culture like, they’re always going to look back on the art. I’m excited about what that’s going to say,” she beamed.
Cuenca's style has unfurled into one of the more recognizable iconography in the scene. But the self-taught artist admits that it took a “long process of self-discovery” and “awkward stages” to get to the level of stature and assurance in her work.
“There’s a transition from when you’re creating something and it being ‘look what I can do’ to ‘this is what I have to say,’” she shared, noting that after figuring out her core beliefs, only then was the groundwork laid in terms of exactly she wanted to express in her art.
Among the learning curves she had undergone throughout her artistic journey thus far, she notes that it was sculpting that posed the most opportunity for growth. “That was something I had to learn the hard way,” she revealed.
Unlike painting, which involves working on a two-dimensional canvas at a single angle, sculpting challenges a painter like herself to consider what “looks good for 360 degrees.” Luckily for Cuenca, she found that: “It’s always the learning process that’s very fun for me and very interesting.”
Cuenca is best known for her abstract floral sculptures and paintings. Beyond her usual color palette, which varies from feminine to playful, and more recently, the use of light-absorbing black paint, gold leaf makes quite a striking appearance in her catalog of works.
“I think when I was a kid I read or watched something on the Discovery channel that gold is a happy color, and gives people a sense of ‘oh, they’re lucky,’” she says. “Call it superstitious, but it’s something [that] of course you want to share.”
Her process, she also revealed, is purely improvisational and dependent on her mood. There is without a doubt that it shows, from the slow current the viewer can’t help but be swayed by, to the sense of peace and tranquility every piece evokes.
This MoCAF, art enthusiasts can expect Cuenca’s familiar touch, but with a twist.
The artist shared that she is currency experimenting with new figures, transitioning from the examination of florals to fabric, as if the material is submerged underwater. Visitors will also be treated to Cuenca’s style cast on Eero Aarnio puppies and Eames elephants, available in her signature colors and shapes.
The two, she shared, are representative of the personal journey of building her family home, having been exposed to and inspired by the breadth of furniture pieces during this time.
Catch Katrina Cuenca’s special exhibition at Booth 28 of this year’s Modern and Contemporary Art Festival, happening from July 5 to 7 at the Marquis Events Place.
