Transition 2008/2009

Top experiences of 2008 that I have filed in my memory bank:

Visited BENCAB in Baguio and saw the MUSEUM he and ANNIE are building on Asin Road coming up. He was moving into his
new studio which had a stacks of wrapped books on a wheeled table. A beautiful table; piles of history in art. And outside, a bonsai collection in his Japanese garden to die for (photo). Art as experience. We will be there when the Museum opens its doors.

Went to MELBOURNE twice this year, first with family, second as guests of MANIX SANTOS and family. Our favorite photographer from Australia who introduced us to the best coffees and fed us fantastically-- the East African food of the ABYSSINIAN on a cold winter's evening was unforgettable. We will be back. As MANIX, better known as EMMANUEL T. SANTOS
broke Christies auction records for Southeast Asian Photography, will be back at Silverlens in Feburary for the second half of his angel series The Passing of Light.

Mourned and celebrated our dear friend CYRIL SANTIAGO, who passed away on March 29th, of cancer. Cyril climbed mountains and flew planes. He dreamt hard and achieved much. A life packed with indelible memories especially for everyone who knew him. He was a winner. The type who made those he beat feel like they won.

Sentimentality and personal memoir happened with my father's film negatives. THE MORO NEGATIVES are single irrepeatable images of his negatives from the 50's and '60s collaged with mine from 2007 and 2008. The darkroom is where PHOTOGRAPHY started for me, and to have one in our house, built by DODONG with an enlarger borrowed from DEREK SORIANO is joy; and playtime every couple of weeks.

The FINANCIAL CRISIS hit us, with less than stellar sales at this year's fall international art fairs, and some shrinking of Silverlens Foundation endowment which will keep us from handing out grants in 2009. Lesson learned, we must preserve in order to give.

However, now is the time for artists to make, and for collectors to buy, GOOD ART.

And so we at Silverlens built a BRIDGE into SLAB. SLab, short for Silverlens Lab, is our second gallery for painting and sculpture, with a Main Gallery and a second space called 20SQUARE. With a kick ass website by Jois and Rex of INKSURGE.
SLAB opened with two fantastic shows, DEATH TO THE MAJOR, VIVA MINOR by PATTY EUSTAQUIO and NEW WORK by MARIANO CHING. Both easily listing as the more important shows of contemporary Philippine art for 2008.

http://slab.silverlensphoto.com/slab.htm

The design and construction of the spaces and bridge, applause and ovation to TISHA DE BORJA, ANNA SY and KENNETH, and RG ROA our contractor who, very unusually for contractors, has endeared himself to us for projects now and in the future.

And who cannot mention 2008 without mentioning BARRACK OBAMA!? R and I were in New York for election day, with friends Pepper Roxas and Owen Houhoulis, when Obama became President-Elect Obama. Tears shed, hugs exchanged, the arrival of change. I was in New York when 9/11 happened, living two blocks away from the World Trade Center, and the instant THAT happened, we knew that our world was going to change. THIS night in New York in November, seven weeks and four weeks to the date since 9/11, the world had changed again, but for the better.

Time to Play

I got my own room. A studio to play in, with great light and a good mix of empty walls and windows. The first day in it was for organizing about 2 years of my negatives plus my father's negatives (the Moro Negatives) in 3 formats: medium format color, medium format black and white, and 35 mm color.

My negatives are arranged chronologically, labeled with the Shoot Number/Subject Matter/Roll Number/ Date/ Copyright (both the contact prints and the negatives), then stored separately. For analog, I find that it is easier to keep the contact prints in clam shell binders and the negatives in glassine sleeves sequenced in an acid free box. That way I can look at the contact prints without disturbing the negatives, and only pull the negatives out when they are going into the darkroom.

Looking at the Moro Negatives, i am having a hard time dating them-- having to rely on clues such as how old my siblings could have been at the time, or where in the PH were they taken. All the more it makes sense to label contact prints with dates. I've partially solved the problem by involving my mother and a couple of siblings in the identification process. I think that when they see themselves in the '60s and '70s, they'll get a bigger headache than the one I had.

My desk is clean. Time to play.

After the Lechon

The various menus these last few days of stuffing ourselves included three lechons, turkey, ham, prime rib, potato and beet salad, 8 treasures chicken, roast beef, three kinds of pancit noodles, veal stew, lumpia, roast pork with potatoes, fresh pasta, meatloaf, tossed green salad, fruit salad, chocolate mudpie, strawberry shortcake, sapin sapin, torta madrid, puto bumbong, maja blanca, bibinkga, brownies, and pastillas.

Not to mention, we treated ourselves to a double cheeseburger with fries and a hot fudge sundae from McD's on Christmas Day.

After all that, how to explain 'everything in moderation' to nephew E above who attacked the lechon skin?

Tiger's OK

We got the results of his last blood test. His liver enzymes have come down, but they are still elevated. As with human liver ailments such as hepatitis, it takes a while for the liver to get back to normal. He can however be vaccinated. So, M and Tiger went to the vet yesterday to get the 5 in 1, or whatever it is called, that will keep him safe from diseases that lurk out there.

R asked for medication for his 'nerbyos' when the fireworks begin. So the vet sent 'calming tablets', that's what it says on the packaging. Being a doctor, I wonder if that is the brand name, because it definitely ain't the generic name.

Gifts, Tangible and Intangible

I got the Rauschenberg! As I got a Sugimoto. Two thick retrospective monographs of two artists I love love love. R got the Rauschenberg from the SLab Shop and put it in my Christmas stocking. Lesson learned: if you ask for something often enough, you will get it.

Who doesn't love perfect gifts? This year, as recipient, tops has to be for the hand tooled leather suitcase that P gave, in blue with green straps. Its got 'SLAB' on its side. To say that I love it is an understatement. It's one of those objects that you probably won't use for its original purpose but want for want's sake-- to look at, to fill, to empty, to open. Thank you P!



Also got an LED flashlight, cut glass candle holders, fresh pasta, and a variety of Muji items. A good year.



There are of course intangible gifts that are neither material or measurable. A few that come to mind in the last few days include the Christmas party of BV's company of 40 strong women and their families (Tita P really pulled out all the stops setting up the garden as theme park with all the games, song and dance, and lechon baka); next, ten-year old nephew M's narrative with full cartoon 'Kapow' 'Pandemonium' 'Kabang' expressions of the other grandkids not listening to grandmother; and most memorably, R's 86 year old grandmother beautifully playing Franz Liszt's Un Sospiro on the piano as her gift to us for Christmas, her shakes all disappeared and beautiful music music music filled the house.

Speaking to the Relatives

It is the Christmas thing to do. And so it began, the seeing of family and sharing of food for the Noche Buena. It started with lunch on the 24th with my father's side's reunion, then dinner with my mother's side. then the Eve with my immediate family. Felt good to see three to four generations on either side, and actually have something to say to them. Plus the food's really good. So I learned about my niece A who is the brand manager of Domex housecleaning liquid, and cousin W who's run over 70 marathons in his life and is a regular at both the Boston and the New York, and cousin P who makes crystallized sugar (R and I have been looking for this all over!) and gifted me with 5 kilos! I had a really good time talking to these people.

I guess because I am a fairly adjusted adult who's identity issues have been dealt with as far as I possibly can (by such acts as, but not limited to, constantly telling my seventy something year old mother that she makes me uncomfortable), I am genuinely interested in these lives that are genetically and generationally linked to mine.

It is raining here in Manila this Christmas. Very odd weather. Have a good one wherever you are everyone!

CRS, 1972-2008

In the thousands of miles R and I travelled this year, a few thousand were spent visiting our friends Myra and Cyril while Cyril was undergoing treatment for cancer. He was diagnosed on August 20, 2006, Myra's 32nd birthday. For someone who absolutely feared needles, doctors, and hospitals, he quickly became a pro at helping the nurses find patent vessels to poke their needles into. He was a gentle patient, as he was a gentle man. He was a brave patient, as he was fearless adventurer. He passed away at the end of winter this year, on a clear blue sky day, a day perfect for flying as he used to say and Myra pointed out.

Cyril climbed mountains and flew planes. He dreamt hard and achieved much. A life packed with indelible memories especially for everyone who knew him. He was a winner. The type who made those he beat feel like they won.

And the boy above playing night chess in Union Square in New York City is Lorenzo PS, the second son of Myra and Cyril. And these are his brothers watching, and cheering him on, in this pick up game. This was a few weeks after Cyril passed away, when Myra decided to take his ashes and the kids on an extended trip to his favorite places in the States.

Enzo is good at chess, and Myra knew that he was up to the challenge. As we were watching the game, she turned to me and said, ' I want them to grow up making the most of all their experiences, life's too short'. You Go My. Cyril be very proud.

Christmas Gifts

My policy on gift giving is to gift what the person wants but would never buy for him or herself. It need not be expensive nor difficult to find, but it should make the person feel special, be lots of fun, or make life easier in some way. For example, one year my sister gave my mother an E-pass to zip through the tolls on the hi-way, makes life easier; and made more meaningful since my mother thinks that an E-pass is a luxury, so it made her feel special. She is of the war generation.

Living in the PH, there are many whose simple needs are not met. Friend C introduced us to the Sisters of Charity in Antipolo who take in orphans and abandoned children. She was to host a Christmas party for them, and the Mother Teresa nuns asked, as gifts, for shorts for the little boys and slippers for the toddlers. Turns out that the less than 2 year olds would stare longingly at the playground but were not allowed to play as they had no slippers, and the cement would cut their tiny feet.

So shorts and slippers we sent, and they were very happily received.





Merry Christmas! May you find a quiet patch of peace this coming year.

100,000+ Miles

R and I got on a plane this time last year to Bhutan. The eleven days in the Himalayan kingdom was a life changing experience. R and I hung prayer flags on our driveway to remind us of the simplicity of what is important. This morning I got on a plane again but this time to return home to Manila from Davao. Over the last year, R and I have logged over a hundred thousand miles of plane rides. We have travelled, worked, inspired, been inspired, lost, won, discovered, celebrated, and given thanks.

Sunrise over Davao Gulf Dec 18 2008 meets Bhutanese Prayer Flags from Dec 18 2007.

A note on the photograph: these were straight on photographs taken with a digital camera, no photoshop but just to size down to fit the screen you are looking at.

Ever After, Bedtime Stories by BV

The first is a skull called Ever After (Female) and the second is Bear. They are by good friend and artist BV. I think they live beyond the imagination. I've been shooting them almost daily since her show at SLab opened a few weeks ago, and only now am happy with my photography. The socket of the right eye, camouflaged by the fleurdemal, stares at me, as does the beadwork catching light on the bear's flank appears like a fleshy gash. I love it. People who have seen the show think it's 'cute'. That would be the last word I would apply to the selection of animals we have lurking. More like seductive, or dangerous, or as Tita G says 'Salbahe'.

Seeing Green

I love trees. This photograph I took last year in Kyoto has been posted on my board since. We have a tree in the gallery that guards the entrance. I've passed it many times, stood with smoking friends under it, have had it trimmed, swept away it's berries, but not until R showed me the perfect spot from where to sit in the new gallery SLab, have I really looked at it. It's a great patch of green framed by the bridge and the illusion of the meeting canopies. Bet the architects didn't know that would happen.

The tree definitely a better view than from the top of our bridge, here trying to catch a little bit of that famous sunset, but seeing a lot of the carshop and the church.

The Difference Between Roppongi and Makati

Occupying a ground floor, garden facing spot in Tokyo's Midtown Galleria shopping center, right across from the 21_21 Design Site of Issey Miyake is Dogdays. It has a spa (for pampering your pet), a hotel (for doggy day care), and a clinic (where the vet is), and of course the salon. The salon had stylists with little leather pouches stocked with hairstyling shears (several sizes) and counters on hydraulics, and ceiling grids which dropped the blowers. Haircuts started at Yen 2,500 (roughly USD250). Each pooch with a happy haircut got photographed and displayed.

And here is our Tiger, who we wanted to send a picture of to the salon. His cut costs P500 (USD10) every couple of months, care of groomer R. We are glad we live in the RP.

Who will get the Rauschenberg?

We are having a Book Sale at SLab. Photography, art, and design books below list price. The goodies we've found over the year sent home via balikbayan box from all over. First day saw our hard core regulars, who took theory books and rare picture ones. I am wondering who's going to buy the Rauschenberg Retrospective Monograph. As shopgirls, we are channeling our friend P who runs a Sunday booth in Brooklyn, selling printed papers and shirts. P told us not to channel her, 'baka malasin'.

The Morning Commute

M lives for Tiger. Eponymous to the blog name, he is the center of their lives (as well as ours). He not doing too well. Too much protein in his diet fed from his grandmother's table. He is the most silent begging dog, which adds to his cuteness of course. He has a repeat blood test for his liver enzymes on December 22. I hope he does not learn to beg AND bark by then.

Don Quixote and the Pago Florentino

Four wines that we choose on a round of wine tasting over ribs, squid, and ostrich at Purple Feet. Started with 20, a selection of Australian, French, and Spanish... R and I narrowed it down to 8...


Then to 4... The winners are

My favorite of the bunch is the PAGO FLORENTINO which is a wine from the region of La Mancha (Spain). It's got Don Quixote on the label. It must be decantered and allowed to breath for a bit, but it is delicious. I have always been a fan of Don Quixote, and this was a happy coincidence. A wood carving that used to sit in our living room is one of the tragic figure with Sancho Panza. And I've recreated it a couple of times in my work. These two pieces from shows I've done. Both no longer in my collection, but am happy to pass on the Impossible Dream.



Did you know that ostrich is considered poultry?
R planning to have a bar in the gallery which is why we're on our nth round of tastings. I am not complaining.