Writer/artist Igan D’Bayan’s fifth solo show, “Dead Beliefs & Black Vomits”, is said to be his “darkest suite of paintings” yet, and it shows. You won’t find bright colors or pleasant subject matter in the collection unless bat-headed humans crucified upside-down, a zombified Adolf Hitler being fellated by an equally-rotting incubus, and a pants-less Charles Darwin holding the desiccated husk of an alien baby are your idea of “pleasant.”
The palette he uses is mostly a wash of grays and muted browns, with occasional bursts of color. And none of his subjects appear to be in good health: skeletal figures, diaphanous bodies, or just plain decomposing ones are the norm.
The warped figures and their expressions call to mind some of Francis Bacon’s more disturbing nightmares, with the rubbery/melty faces of Egon Schiele or comics artist Ted McKeever.
Symbols abound, particularly the Crucifix and some Nazi iconography.
The swastika features in “Will To Power” and “Black Snow,” while “Boy From Brazil” has a demon/alien-headed midget — dressed in a parody of a Superman costume (commenting on Nietzsche’s ubermensch) with the SS logo emblazoned on his chest — gives the Hitler salute.
People with animal heads are crucified upside-down and right side up in several pieces, and serve as background dressing in others.
Elsewhere, an upside-down cross is formed by an assortment of spider skeletons that have miniature human skulls. The name of the piece is “The Return of the Son of Armageddon Boogie.”
Despite all this, there is humor to be found in this collection. Sometimes it shows up in titles like “White Castle Whiskey of Doom.” It’s also in the work itself. The just-mentioned piece bears a shrouded Death-looking figure in a red bra, stockings and ridiculous high-heel shoes. The dog-headed man in “Romansa Satanista Espesyal” sports bright pink briefs.
There is a morbid sense of humor at play, combined with the attention to detail that can hide a fetus in the pocket of Charles Darwin in “Origin of the Species,” or imply faces in the beard of a man resembling Rasputin in “White Castle.”
Despite appearances, maybe it’s not all doom and gloom after all.
“Dead Beliefs & Black Vomits” is at the SM Art Center, fourth floor of SM Megamall A, until August 3. For information, call Chari Elinzano or Inas Amoyo at 635-6061.
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Fully Booked celebrates the third anniversary of their flagship store at Bonifacio High Street with a sale beginning today if you’re a discount cardholder, July 27 to 29 if you’re a Facebook fan or Twitter follower, and the weekend starting on the 30th will be for everyone else.
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Catch photographer Juan Caguicla and artist Christina Dy’s collaborative show “Stereo 2” at Silverlens, opening this Tuesday at 6 p.m. From what I’ve seen, this promises to go into a different direction from the previous “Stereo”, with less call-and-response and more active collaboration. Should be interesting. Some of these pieces have already been shown in New York.
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This Friday ManilArt ’10 begins and will continue throughout the weekend at the SMX Convention Center. Last year’s ManilArt did not disappoint and this should be a good show as well. Also on Friday, I believe, will be the formal opening of the RONAC Art Center in Greenhills, where the Bunker/Obey store has already opened.
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Ramon De Veyra blogs intermittently at http://www.thesecuriousdays.com, but is mostly on Twitter.