There is something exciting (or even anxiety-inducing) about reconnecting with someone you have not seen in a long time. Even the mere thought of it is enough to rattle or rile someone. The same, perhaps, can be said of these eight artists when the idea of exhibiting together after 30 years of not doing so came up almost organically. Like long-time friends finding each other on social media after a hiatus, it did not take long for these eight artists—namely, Ronald Achacoso, Francesca Enriquez, Pardo de Leon, Jet Melencio, Aleth Ocampo, Dan Raralio, Popo San Pascual, and Reg Yuson—to organize a get-together-slash-reunion.
All students of the great Roberto Chabet, these eight artists are currently exhibiting as part of Salcedo Auctions’ Private View, in a show titled “misfits in the afternoon,” which was launched last Sept. 28. It is, as Salcedo Auctions Chairman and Chief Specialist Richie Lerma explains, an apt title. These eight, after all, were the “it” guys and girls of their generation of young artists, each bringing their unique style and approach to conceptual art.
Although they had not been part of a group exhibit since their university days—or early post-university days—some continued to have individual shows, while others pursued careers apart from art. Still, what was common among all these eight artists was their continued practice of art, whether for exhibits or for their own personal spaces. None of them stopped creating works of beauty, as is evident in the pieces now on display at Salcedo Auctions.
It was as if they all had a common theme in mind when, in fact, there really was none. Nevertheless, the pieces on display flow to create a striking statement, combining to form one harmonious yet disruptive image. They are, after all, students of one master. And show curator Nilo Ilarde was the perfect “gel,” so to speak, for the eight artists, having graduated himself from the same Fine Arts school at the University of the Philippines and having previously curated shows for some of the eight artists.
‘misfits in the afternoon’ is on view at Salcedo Auctions until Oct. 11.