An Addie SyCip Cukingnan solo exhibit for the benefit of International Care Ministries
In a time when the world is in disarray and so many people need help, it is hard to know where to even begin to make a difference. For artist Addie SyCip Cukingnan, she looked to her hands, the artistry in her and she began to paint—not just for herself, but for the benefit of others.
Over the years, Addie has generously supported many charitable organizations through her exhibits, including UNICEF, World Vision, Alay Kapwa, to name a few. This year, she has made International Care Ministries (ICM) as the sole beneficiary of her solo exhibit on August 9 to 24 in celebration of her birthday to be held at the Art Lounge Manila at The Podium in Ortigas Center.
ICM is an international charity that has been delivering training and resources to improve the lives of the ultra-poor of the Philippines since 1992. Addie was invited by her friend and gallery owner Susanne Tiausas to join the ICM Manila Organizing Committee. As she learned more about ICM’s programs and projects among the communities in Palawan, Visayas, and Mindanao, “It just made sense to me and felt right to dedicate this exhibit towards ICM’s efforts to uplift the poorest of the poor in the country,” Addie shares.
The exhibit, curated by Ricky Francisco, will showcase 25 paintings inspired by a river cruise Addie took in China to explore the rural countryside of the land of her forefathers. She entitled her show In the Stillness of the Mist, from the otherworldly stillness she experienced on the river. She captured the towering gorges and junk boats quietly sailing in the mist. She shares, “There was a feeling of serenity as if you’re in another world.”
In these difficult times, the scenes depicted in the paintings never seem more faraway than they are now, but Addie offers them up as vessels of hope for people in need. With this exhibit, art lovers not only gain a beautiful painting, but they also contribute to ICM’s advocacy to serve and uplift ultra-poor Filipinos to achieve a better quality of life. “Every purchase will be a magnanimous investment towards the greater good of the nation,” Addie says.
ICM’s work
Though ICM’s programs had to be put on hold because of the quarantine, the organization has been able to pivot from its normal operations to quickly address the devastating by-product of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines: hunger. To date, ICM has distributed over 14 million meals and 100 million seeds to 2.5 million Filipinos, and the work goes on.
This rapid and effective response to the pandemic crisis is only possible because of decades of innovation around efficient, effective, and scalable charity operations. Over the last decade, ICM’s Transform training program has graduated 1.4 million ultra-poor Filipinos with livelihood skills, health training, values formation, and savings groups. Before the virus took hold, ICM reported that its four-month Transform program improved ultra-poor household income by 146%, reduced serious illness by 29%, and decreased chronic hunger by 19%.
In the Stillness of the Mist, a solo show by Addie SyCip Cukingnan will be running from August 9 to 24 at the Art Lounge Manila in the Podium, Ortigas Center. The opening of the exhibit will be streamed live on Facebook at the “In the Stillness of the Mist” event page.
Art Lounge Manila: Mitch at +63977.839.8971 or +63998.993.7968 | artloungemanila@gmail.com | Rowena Sozan-Kakilala of ICM +63918.937.1036. | www.caremin.com.