Thomas Godin has a childhood friend in Jewelmer’s Jacques-Christophe Branellec. Originally from Saint-Pol-de-Leon in northern Finistére, Brittany, Thomas finally accepted Jacques-Christophe's invitations to visit the Philippines in 2013. He was fascinated by our islands and shorelines, seeing echoes of his own Finistère coasts in them. As Thomas puts it, it felt like finding a second home, and now, he can’t imagine existence without living a part of his life here in the Philippines.

Cebu, Taal, and the Jewelmer pearl farms in the Visayas have all become inspirations for the more recent output of this painter and printmaker. They join his initial "muses" of stained glass windows in cathedrals and the sun’s mischief as it creates chromatic shades on the Finistére coastline. Godwin’s aesthetic trajectory has led him to our tropical islands, and through his friendship with Jacques-Christophe and his wife Mia, an exhibit of his work at Whitespace Makati became my introduction to this super-friendly, enthusiastic, and engaging artist.

It’s the technique applied to Thomas’ art that informs and beguiles us, and makes us take a second look at his production. At its most basic, it’s a press roller in action - ink and paint on an engraved metal plate meeting the white sheet of vellum paper. And keep in mind, that the outcome of this encounter is always uncertain. They’re etchings that invite the viewer to go along with Thomas on his inner travels, his impressions of the visual stimulus that made him want to create the art.

Whether it’s maps, volcanoes, underwater dives and life, there is an elusive quality to the copper to light engravings that allow us to absorb and interpret to our own inclination. And as Thomas explains, beyond the Breton and Philippine landscapes and shorelines, his peregrinations have brought him to the Balkans, the USA, Mexico and even Bhutan, and you’ll see slips of these travels become motifs in his artworks. 

The technically demanding process involves a metal plate (made of copper, zinc, aluminium, etc), and a press. The resulting engravings were historically done in print, in books of the 17th and 18th century. A self taught artist, Thomas has opted to use this technique but imbue it with size and scale, thus creating something unique and particular to his artistic vision. In fact, his Landerneau studio now houses one of the world’s largest press. It’s a press capable of producing works that measure up to ten meters in length.

Keep up to date with Thomas at www.ThomasGodin.fr, and on IG via ThomasGodin.art. The works exhibited during the one day were for sale, and can still be viewed on his social media platforms.