The first Visayas art fair
The first ever Visayas Art Fair held at Montebello Hotel in Cebu City was an event initiated by the National Commission for Culture and Arts, together with the Cebu Design Week Inc., Office of the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas, Sacred Heart School for Boys Batch 1985 Foundation, and the Cebu Furniture Industries Foundation.
The Sacred Heart School (SHS) Batch 85 held the ArTabang 4: Silent Auction to benefit various disaster relief efforts and art organizations in the Philippines. All works for the auction were donated by the artists, including Ronald Ventura, Dino Gabito, Randalf Dilla, Joel Chavez, and Cebuano Mark Copino.
ArTabang has been assisting the rehabilitation of communities such as the P2-million donation to the Aboitiz Foundation Inc. for Northern Cebu, which was devastated by typhoon Yolanda and P1 million to the Roof Relief Project of Gawad Kalinga for Ormoc City that was affected by the earthquake.
The three-day fair featured activities that included the main exhibition of several galleries, including a number from Manila, the all-women exhibition “By No Means,” an exhibition by the father of abstract expressionism in Cebu, Tito Cuevas, called “In Bold Strokes,” and the Makers’ Pop-Up Market.
The Kalibutan Project of the Department of Trade and Industry Region 7, which the Design Center of the Philippines supported, also joined the fair.
Another activity was the launching of the “I Love Filipino Design Activity Book” that featured works from 19 prestigious names in the Philippine design industry, including Happy Garaje, Vito Selma, Debbie Palao, and multi-awarded designer and artist Kenneth Cobonpue, who put up his first immersive light installation “Curio.”
Chocolate Queen Raquel Toquero-Choa of the Chocolate Chamber had several sessions to showcase how cacao can be transformed into various products.
The Cebu Wear Fashion Show featured Miss Cebu candidates that celebrated hablon, the woven fabric of Cebu, as seen and felt in the designs by Dexter Alazas.
A printmaking workshop and on-the-spot painting competition were also held during this exciting first Visayan Art Fair.
It was a roaring success and I can’t wait to go back for the second edition next year!
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