Nine Filipino artists will be at Emirates Palace today for a one-day-only event celebrating 35 years of Filipino-Emirati bilateral ties and to mark the 117th anniversary of the Philippines’ independence. Dubai-based artist Susan Villanueva de Guzman, who is also a professor of graphic design at Higher College of Technology in Sharjah, is part of the art collective Ugnayang Sining Tomasino (United Art from Santo Tomas) that was founded four years ago in Manila. The collective consists of 22 graduates from the art and design faculties of the University of Santo Tomas in Manila. Formed to promote the country’s artistic talent, Ugnayang Sining Tomasino hosts one large international exhibition every year.
Last year they were in Los Angeles with the Kalayaan Art Exhibit. This year, the UAE is the venue for the events and next year, the group is back in the United States with a show in Arizona. In fact, the collective are so popular that their calendars are booked until 2017.
Meet the artists from the collective
As part of this year's event, nine of the artists from the collective are showing four works each at the Emirates Palace in an exhibition titled Philippines: Freedom@117, Friendship@35.
As well as art, the day-long event will showcase traditional handicrafts and several locally based Filipino companies will display their wares, such as a jewellery, leatherwear and designer clothing. There will also be a drive to promote travel and tourism, with representatives from two local airlines giving people historical information about the Philippines and tips on the best places to visit.
“The main theme is Filipino culture and tradition,” says de Guzman. “We would like to share it with the rest of the world. We want others to know who we are as people; that we love to have fun, enjoy life, sing and be happy.”
While de Guzman’s work is symbolic and abstract, her colleagues’ pieces range from realist interpretations of ancient song and dance festivals to sculpture, relief and vibrant expressions of all the elements of life in the country.
When she arrived in the UAE in 1993, de Guzman recalls there were only 80,000 Filipinos living in the UAE. Now the number is close to a million.
“We are many living here now, but most people only see us working – either in service jobs or taking care of their families,” she says. “They don’t see our spirit, or where we came from, which is why this is such a great event.”
Irineo ‘Ernie’ R Velasquez, the president of Ugnayang Sining Tomasino, says: “Philippine art is very distinct, and it is our mission to make Ugnayang Sining Tomasino one of the premier art groups in the Philippines, and to share the beauty of Philippine art with the whole world.”
The exhibition will move to Dubai's Art Couture under the title UgnayangSiningTomasino Art – Filipinas Shine in the UAE.
Cynthia Richards, manager of Art Couture, says the exhibition is vital to the role of the gallery. “We like to bring different cultures and communities to our gallery and encourage our audiences to get to know the different nationalities living and working in the UAE.”
• Philippines: Freedom@117, Friendship@35 is from 11am to 3pm today at Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi
• UgnayangSiningTomasino Art – Filipinas Shine in the UAE runs from Thursday until June 16 at Art Couture in Al Badia Golf Club, InterContinental, Dubai Festival City. There is also an Art & Coffee Morning with the artists on Saturday from 11am to 1pm (Dh50 per person)
aseaman@thenational.ae
