Toots Magsino exposes her brave heart

MANILA, Philippines - It always takes courage to tell one’s personal story. But mixed-media collage artist Toots Magsino had more than that when she opened her “Between Episodes” exhibit last Wednesday at the ArtistSpace, 2/F Glass Wing of the Ayala Museum in Makati City. The show runs until June 28.

Pinned on honesty and anchored on hope, Toots’ more than 30 artworks on exhibit chronicle her personal travails and triumphs. Each work of art explodes with the vibrancy of life as strong shades of red, orange, yellow, green, and blue were used in each canvas. A closer look, however, will reveal silent details, muted perhaps by their daintiness, like little stamps or negligible strings. But it is these small details that seep into the sub-consciousness of the viewer.

Toots, in the introduction of her exhibit, reveals that she is bipolar, a condition she has dealt with for more than 20 years now. The artworks on exhibit are products of her two major episodes that were both threatening and inspiring, labyrinthine and liberating. In between her highs and lows, she chose art as her weapon to fortify herself. Though her family and close friends are privy to her condition, Toots has decided to come out in the open about it so more people will have an enlightened understanding of what being bipolar is all about.

“To be honest, I really don’t know what to expect of the exhibit because it is a very personal show. But every time I started getting scared, I just remind myself that I was doing the show to help others who may be bipolar but can’t seem to come to grips with that fact and to help people in general to understand the condition and to lessen its stigma,” says Toots about her exhibit.

“Pieces of Me” by Toots Magsino a

“Between Episodes” is her 10th solo show. It marks a turning point in her career, as she decides to make Manila her home once again. Toots has lived, studied and worked in New York City since 1997. She completed two four-year programs at The Art Students League of New York: fine arts painting and fine arts printmaking. In 2008, she was awarded an O-1B artist visa, granted by the United States government to “individuals with an extraordinary ability in the arts.” She has participated in over 30 group shows in the United States, Italy, Japan, Canada and the Philippines. Her artwork “Unveil,” a 12x6 monoprint, collage, and photo silkscreen calligraphy on archival paper, was chosen to be the cover of the 2007 playbill of the Carnegie Hall.

Her fascinating collage artworks — involving photo transfer, photo silkscreen calligraphy, acrylic on vellum paper, watercolor on watercolor paper, wood, antique wooden frame, fluid acrylic on flexi glass, modeling paste, organic materials on canvas, text on acetate mounted on gesso board, wax seal among other materials — prove that having the condition doesn’t make a bipolar person less productive or expressive. On the contrary, her artwork proves that her struggle with the disorder has become a solid ground upon which to live her life and celebrate its many challenging and jovial moments.

Toots Magsino’s strokes are bold, her lines diaphanous yet never fearful. Her focus is clear: to paint her pains and joys. In the process, she conveys the message that being bipolar should not be kept in the closet but should be celebrated on center stage.

In “When Words Are Not Enough,” an acrylic collage of photo silkscreen calligraphy mounted on 24x40 wood, the artist seems to essay her thoughts in a series of small panels. Sans the thought balloon, the artist conveys that “when words are not enough, art takes over.”

“Vintage” a

Going around the exhibit area is akin to having both a soulful and delightful excursion. In “Home Is Where the Heart Is,” a watercolor collage of photo silkscreen calligraphy on watercolor paper, the artist reflects on the importance of family and family values more than material possessions. As Toots explains, “After 40 years, my parents decided to sell our family home. Initially, it was quite unsettling but I’ve since realized that the essence of that house was not in its structure. It was in the love that was nurtured in it.” Toots is the youngest of 10 children of the famed urologist Dr. Ben Magsino and dedicated homemaker Mely Rivera Magsino.

“Though I began as a still life painter, the many years of learning the craft of oil painting and then printmaking still didn’t quite satisfy my artistic voice. I continued to seek other means of expressing everything that was inside me. That’s when I discovered the wonderful world of collage. By combining everything I had learned from the start of my artistic journey, I discovered a visual language that communicated my thoughts and feelings in the most honest way. Each artwork is an autobiographical commentary of life as I know it. My art is life itself as seen through my eyes,” she says.

In “Between Episodes,” Toots’ artworks are badges of honor she has earned for bravely living with her challenging condition. She peels away the veneer of fear and pain to expose her brave heart — a heart that acknowledges courage and sincerity, hope and determination, wisdom and gratitude in between journeys that are paved with challenging moments.

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“Into my Little World”

“Between Episodes” runs until June 28 at the ArtistSpace, 2/F Glass Wing of the Ayala Museum, Greenbelt Park, Makati. For information, call 757-7117, visit www.ayalamuseum.org.