In celebration of the Christmas season and Vintana.ph’s gallery opening, we prepared a group art exhibit entitled “Spirits of Unsung Christmas Carols”. In this exhibition, Vintana presents vibrant and meaningful Christmas-themed artworks by emerging artists across the Philippines. Each work has their own stories behind them—scenes and images that speak of sweet Christmas childhood memories like a caroling street child, a mechanical toy box with 80s and 90s vintage Filipino toys, dynamic strokes of abstract shapes and colors, and much more.
This collection contains ten artworks by Kean Larrazabal, Ian Inoy, Ireland Jill, Chinnich Candao, Raymond Gueverra, Arvin Santos, Tissa Pagaduan, Mark Amazona, Nikko Pelaez and Sher Cajucom. View their wonderful artworks and make someone’s Christmas extra special by gifting them with a heart-warming painting.
Who doesn’t want to get toys for Christmas? In every adult, I believe that there’s still a child within us. That child’s eyes would still twinkle at the sight of toys, especially when they are reminded of toys from their past. This artwork is something that you can display and hang. There’s a blue lever at the lower right portion. Rotate it counter clockwise and the eyes, mouth, and other toys inside will move. I hope this artwork will awaken the child in us this Christmas season and find joy in its moving mechanisms.
This painting is a zany representation of a normal holiday, featuring a good ol’ pal, Mr. Elf. Growing up, my parents would always tell me to be nice whenever Christmas was near so that I’d get real presents and not coal from Santa Claus.
ROOM FOR EVERYONE ON THE NICE LIST
IRELAND JILL
ACRYLIC ON CANVAS
24” X 24” | 2020
AVAILABLEMORE DETAILSWhen things are already hard, we sometimes get thrown into even more difficult situations in life. When this happens, we tend to complain. However, there are people who in spite of their hardships, carry on and strive to survive and possibly have a better life. This is seen in a lot of Filipinos. This Christmas season, may this painting inspire other people to not give up and be strong even when facing losses.
Farha is the arabic for happiness. As a Muslim, I do not celebrate Christmas but I grew up witnessing Pinoy Christmas Celebrations. More than the festivities, traditions and fancy parties, what I simply observed from Pinoys during Christmas is every Pinoy’s ability to celebrate happiness through simple gatherings, strong family ties, the thought of giving and most of all being able to get by any hurdle in life with a smile. This learning reminds me of Aristotle’s definition of Eudaimonia which explains that true happiness lies in one’s perspective. A flourishing life is about deep connections, being able to find what’s positive in every life situation especially during uncertainties,
more than ephemeral satisfaction, it is when we do things for the greater good that leads us to real happiness. I deem that Pinoys, particularly in the holiday season have profound ways of finding spirit every year. Seeing life’s colors depends on how you tilt the prism – it is in your own view.
Christmas is really for the children. But how about those children who were born under unfortunate circumstances? When I think about it, these kids may not have experienced what most average or privileged families experience. While we enjoy our presents, fancy get togethers, and overflowing food, underprivileged children continue to be out in the streets singing a song or two to make a few bucks. Perhaps this is happiness for them? Maybe it is in those little moments of receiving even a small amount of alms is when they feel the spirit of Christmas.
"Madalas nating sabihin na ang tunay na diwa ng kapaskohan ay para sa mga bata. Pero paano kung sa pagmulat palang ng kanilang inosenteng mata ay sinubok na ng sirkumstansya. Inosenteng mga tunog ng instrumentong gawa sa tansan Ang pumupuno sa bawat sulok ng kalsada.
Hindi lang para magbigay ng saya, Kung 'di para bigyan ang sarili ng pag-asa. Pag-asa na ang kumukulong tiyan sana'y mapawi ng mga bawat berso ng kanta Nakailanman hindi at hindi natin maririnig, Pero makikita lang sa bawat mata nila."
- Kean Larrazabal, 2020
Whenever my mom decorates our house with Christmas decors, it always gets me excited. In this painting, I used the nutcracker or drummer boy because it reminds me of my life situation during Christmas. Unfortunately this Christmas season, I won't get the chance to see my family due to the pandemic. I think nostalgia is like a bridge that connects, reconnects, and disconnects to and from the memories and relationships that people experience throughout the years. I think it's absolutely normal to feel nostalgic about it because for me, Christmas season is for creating memories that can be reawakened and relationships that can be renewed.
Christmas is fast approaching and we're still facing a pandemic, but as Filipinos, we know that Christmas will push through, no matter what. That's the good thing about us Filipinos, no matter how tragic the situation may be, we always find a way to be happy. We always see a number of reasons to smile. This pandemic surely made our world gloomy, but with our hopeful hearts, our light will always shine through.
Everytime it rains hard in Malabon City, where I live, we always anticipate the rapid rise of the floods. This is something that we have all gotten used to in my area. This season, I look forward to better times, definitely a better year ahead. While we are all somehow drowning in our own troubles, I wish this painting reminds us to always look up and keep our heads above water, and because Christmas is a symbol of hope, I want to share this message through my artwork.
SPIRITS OF UNSUNG CHRISTMAS CAROLS
© SPIRITS OF UNSUNG CHRISTMAS CAROLS
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
VINTANA.PH 2020