This Saturday, September 9, Carmen Art District will be opening a show of Mindanao contemporary art entitled Panit Bukog 5. The exhibition reception and opening program at 4:30 pm is open to all. Carmen Art District is located at #20 Andres Fernandez corner Mahogany Streets, Zone 3, Barangay Carmen, Cagayan de Oro City. This show is brought to us by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts-Committee on Visual Arts (NCCA-CVA) and The Research Institute for Mindanao Culture (RIMCU).
From the Panit Bukog Primer about the history and origins of the exhibition:
“Panit Bukog is skin and bone in the Visayan language. This initiative and platform for contemporary art is also a movement that advocates for contemporary art in the Mindanao region. Panit Bukog’s long history is founded on the camaraderie between artists and their shared vision for art in Mindanao. Its formative structure is the traveling exhibition, conceptualized over meetings among members of the Oro Art Guild in Cagayan de Oro City and the Mixed Media Art Group of Iligan City and later realized in 2000. The first edition was curated by artists Julie Lluch and Bing Elloso. A rigorous and evaluative approach underpins the Panit Bukog exhibitions. Bobi Valenzuela curated the 2001 edition. The exhibitions in Iligan City, Cagayan de Oro City and Davao City showcased a renewed interest in artistic practices in the Mindanao region. Panit Bukog 3 was realized in the cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan in 2003.
Panit Bukog returned after a long hiatus in November 2019. Its exhibitions were presented in two university museums and a commercial venue, the Museo de Oro at Xavier University Ateneo de Cagayan, the Museum of Three Cultures at Capitol University, and the SM Downtown Premier. It presented works by 48 artists from 9 different locations— Cagayan de Oro, Dipolog, Butuan, Iligan, Bukidnon, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga City, Zamboanga del Norte, Misamis Occidental, Pagadian, and Davao. The selection of the works happened over several visits by the curatorial team to cities in Mindanao, with selected works that varied in form, content, and purpose. The exhibitions also succeeded in presenting an intergenerational survey of artist practitioners from the Mindanao region. Panit Bukog 4’s collateral events and public programs also sought to engage local audiences through talks and workshops.”
This year, the featured artists are Nick Aca, Francis Ramir Acevedo, Carlito Amalla, Michael Bacol, Joe Bacus, Isagani Calio, Rogelito Cayas, Elenito Dumlao, Jason Dy, Carzen Esprela, Oscar Esteban Floirendo, Joel Geolamen, Jacinto Geronimo Jr, Kevin Grapa, Markleen Guimbao, Jose Jerry Gumanad, Jerome Icao, Jayson Labtan, Raymund Malikay, Leo Jesus Marquiala, Romy Jones Mata, Chester Mato, Norman Narciso, Donnie Obina, Jeffrey Ouano, Bea Pascubillo, Arjay Fritz Poncardas, Emma Prima, Ruby Sabanal, Maila Secuban, Ninianne Sojor, Albert Vamenta, Jericho Vamenta, Cling Vega, Jose Armin Virata, and Rodney Yap.
