Folkloric energy, scorched landscapes, and shifting notions of home—these February shows challenge how we see ourselves and tell our stories
February is National Arts Month in the Philippines, and for anyone in the art world, it’s pure, exhilarating chaos.
The deadlines are brutal, the pressure unrelenting, and artists race to finish work for a flood of exhibitions—all while anticipation builds for Art Fair Philippines 2025.
For newcomers, it’s often the first true pulse of the year when the Philippine art scene comes together to experience firsthand what makes it a thriving, dynamic ecosystem.
But National Arts Month isn’t just about fun and fanfare. It’s also a time for reflection, reorientation, and, perhaps, protest. February’s exhibitions offer a powerful mix of inspiring, sharp, and thought-provoking shows that challenge how we see ourselves and tell our collective and personal stories.
Poetic, bittersweet, and riveting, these shows tackle folkloric energy in urban visual culture, the metaphor of scorched landscapes in post-colonial societies, the shifting notions of home, and the resilience of the human spirit in the face of generational trauma. They challenge and unsettle, yes, but also inspire, encourage, and comfort.
1. “Each A Small Universe” by Elaine Navas at The Drawing Room
“Elaine Navas, a painter herself, recognizes the unique significance of these often forgotten objects. For her, the palette is more than just a tool; it is a microcosm of the artist’s world. Through it, one can trace the habits, inclinations, and gestures of the painter, capturing the nuances of their creative journey. What seems like a lowly surface for mixing paint becomes a reflection of the artist’s internal world—a repository of their trials and accomplishments, their tensions, indecisions, and resolutions.”
—Cocoy Lumbao, art writer and visual artist
“Each A Small Universe” runs from Feb. 15 until Mar. 15, 2025 at The Drawing Room, Ground Floor, Building C, Karrivin Plaza, 2316 Chino Roces Avenue Extension, Barangay Magallanes, Makati
2. “Bari-bari” by Auggie Fontanilla at Pablo Fort
“A solo exhibit by Auggie Fontanilla reminds us that all things carry a force, a presence beyond their physical form. In Ilocano belief, bari speaks of an unseen power residing within everything: mountains, rivers, storms, stones, and even the smallest seed. It is a world where the sacred and the ordinary intertwine, where spirits inhabit landscapes and objects hum with life.
This exhibition delves into the liminal space between folklore, mythology, and biblical narratives, weaving them together to reveal the hidden energies that shape existence. By fusing Indigenous spirituality with religious iconography, the works reimagine familiar stories through a lens that is both deeply local and universally spiritual.”
–Osie Ocampo, Pablo gallerist
“Bari-bari” runs from Feb. 15 to Mar. 8 at Pablo Fort, C-11, South of Market, Taguig
3. “Bruha ng Disyerto: Landscapes of Fire” by Isola Tong at Gravity Art Space
“It is interesting to note that the language used by the early conquistadors, separating low-land Christian populations who farmed feudal European-style from upland Filipinos, became the basis of the distinction between Indigenous Filipinos and Christianized Filipinos. I argue that this narrative established the framework for our disconnection from the land and the many binaries that stemmed from it: nature versus culture, non-Christian versus Christian, queer/trans versus non-queer, and so on.
The occurrence of destructive wildfires in both California and the tropical Philippines—lands colonized by Spain and later the United States—reflects a poignant historical and environmental parallel. Both regions suffered cultural genocide, erasing thousands of years of ecological knowledge and agricultural practices.”
–Isola Tong
“Bruha ng Disyerto: Landscapes of Fire” runs until Feb. 14 at Gravity Art Space, 1810 Mother Ignacia Ave, Diliman, Quezon City, Metro Manila
READ: What is ‘Bayotic Refugia’? Trans artist Isola Tong explores ecological healing
4. “As if it was swimming” by Luis Antonio Santos at The Drawing Room
“These works begin with flowers, brought home by my mom from my grandmother’s funeral. Through a process of photographing, and translating, the images shift, dissolving and reforming, caught between preservation and loss.
Using watercolor in an unconventional way that combines both mechanical and manual processes, the medium resists control—colors dissolve, details fragment, and surfaces distort. The final images, with their low-fi aesthetic reminiscent of early 90s desktop inkjet printers, no longer resemble the original photographs. What remains is something altered—an echo rather than a replica, a memory rather than a record.”
–Luis Antonio Santos
“As if it was swimming” runs from Feb. 15 to Mar. 15 at The Drawing Room, Ground Floor, Building C, Karrivin Plaza, 2316 Chino Roces Avenue Extension, Barangay Magallanes, Makati
5. “The Weight of Being. A Living Thing Cracked Open” by Pam Quinto at Finale Art File
“The larger project, to be split into 2 solo shows, seeks to articulate the pains of becoming, to be a living thing cracked open. It is an unnerving reflection and confrontation with oneself, exploring inherited trauma and the instincts towards self-obliteration that come with it—embodied in the imagery and metaphor of a pearl and oyster, conceptually anchored by Albert Camus’ The Myth of Sisyphus.
‘One always finds one’s burdens again,’ according to Camus—to go back to my rock, loving my rock, and feeling gratitude for my rock. Imagine, ‘If the descent is thus performed in sorrow, it can also take place in joy.’ Here, the struggle and weariness over absurd reality leads to a denouement—to surrender and accept the absurdities of one’s predicament, to persist nonetheless and always.”
–Pam Quinto
“The Weight of Being. A Living Thing Cracked Open” runs until Mar. 1 at Finale Art File, Gate 1, La Fuerza Compound, Warehouse 17, 2241 Chino Roces Ave, Makati
6. “To Conquer A Home” by Faye Abantao at Finale Art File
“Home is a complicated concept, often riddled with clichés. Home is where the heart is. There is no place like home. For Faye Abantao, home is her anchor for artistic production. She uses paper, old photographs, and everyday objects gathered from her home. More potently, her artistic growth evolves as her lived experience within her home shifts. As a child, it was the walls she colored in creative expression. As an adult and developing artist, it was the bits and pieces of peeling paint, slowly dilapidating over time–transcending toward portraiture and installations. Now, the home unravels with children grown and parents aging.”
–Portia Placino, art educator and writer
“To Conquer A Home” runs until Mar. 1 at Finale Art File, Gate 1, La Fuerza Compound, Warehouse 17, 2241 Chino Roces Ave, Makati
7. “Leaving Home” by Brave Singh at Blanc Gallery
“Home is not just a place; it’s a tapestry woven from the threads of memories, reminding us that while our surroundings may change, the moments we cherish remain forever in our hearts.”
–Brave Singh
“Leaving Home” opened on Feb. 8 and is currently on view at Blanc Gallery, 145 Katipunan Ave, Quezon City
READ: Seasoned artist Phyllis Zaballero remixes past and present in new frames
8. “Breaking to Mend” by Ciane Xavier at Galerie Stephanie
“Love, is like porcelain, is delicate and intricate, crafted with care, adorned with meaning, and vulnerable to cracks under pressure. Yet, from these cracks, new stories emerge.
In ‘Breaking to Mend’ I explore the fragility and resilience of relationships through a layered installation that invites viewers to confront the cycles of connection, rupture, and repair.”
–Ciane Xavier
“Breaking to Mend” opens on Feb. 11 at Galerie Stephanie, 6th Floor, East Wing, Shangri-La Plaza EDSA, cor Shaw Blvd, Mandaluyong
9. “Sorting Facility” by Cian Dayrit presented by Nome Gallery and The Drawing Room at Comuna
“The weight of Dayrit’s practice is in its linkage with liberative movements at this juncture of history. Only with this engagement in history’s formation and yearning is a practice rendered contemporary instead of merely coincidental.”
–Antares Gomez Bartolome, curator, activist, writer
“We’re thrilled to partner with Nome Gallery and Cian Dayrit to present a selection of his works. Together, we’re bringing his perspective to new spaces and audiences, and we can’t wait to share this with everyone.”
–Cesar Jun Villalon, gallerist behind The Drawing Room
“Sorting Facility” runs from Feb. 19 to 27 at Comuna, 238 Pablo Ocampo Sr. Ext, Makati
10. “furball Ex Machina | Old Farts, New Shit” by various artists at Modeka
“It’s amazing to see furball still pushing back, still making noise, and still refusing to go soft. Their work in ‘furball Ex Machina’ feels like a time capsule and a battle cry all at once—proof that some things, like grit and good chaos, never really fade.”
–Bubbles Bermudez, Modeka gallerist
“For their second group exhibition at Modeka, ‘furball Ex Machina’ furball presents new work, all in cathode-ray tube television sets, raging against the planned obsolescence of our technologies, the ravages of middle age, and the comforts of a comfortable life-making paintings instead.
The dying of the light, so to speak.
Yep, these old farts are still at it. And what a relief they are.
They don’t make these types of models anymore.” —Erwin Romulo, curator of furball Ex Machina
“furball Ex Machina | Old Farts, New Shit” runs from Feb. 12 to Mar. 5 at Modeka, Warehouse 20A La Fuerza 1 2241, Don Chino Roces Avenue, Makati
READ: Conservator Margarita Villanueva on preserving the past, present, and future of Philippine art
11. “Fotomoto Open Call: I/Land,” “State of Flux,” and “Centrefold” by various artists at Ayala Museum
“The Ayala Museum celebrates National Arts Month with Fotomoto’s program of exhibitions and talks. Fotomoto’s Open Call exhibit ‘I/Land’ is a selection from over 1,000 submitted images, vetted by a Southeast Asian jury of luminaries in the field of photography. Adjacent at the museum’s Glass Lane is ‘Centrefold’ a site-specific, multimedia installation curated by Gio Panlilio of Tarzeer Pictures. Opening at the lobby for ‘10 Days of Art’ is a special exhibit ‘State of Flux’ curated by Angel Velasco Shaw. Participating artists explored the theme ‘I/Land’ with the lobby space in mind—a place of transit, convergence and temporality, presenting a diversity of applications of the photographic image. All exhibits are open to the public and free of charge.”
–Stephanie Frondoso, curator, art writer, and visual artist
“Fotomoto Open Call: I/Land,” “State of Flux,” and “Cetrefold” runs until Feb. 23 at Ayala Museum, Greenbelt Park, Makati Avenue corner Dela Rosa Street, Ayala Center, Makati
12. “Spectrum Of So Far So Good” by Dex Fernandez at Finale Art File
“Dex ‘infests’ the gallery with works that tell a narrative which is fun yet at the same time vulnerable. He practices constraint with his use of the space, yet remains true to his nature. He creates a world not only for himself, but can be shared with others.”
–Vita Sarenas, gallerist behind Finale Art File
“In this exhibition, Dex Fernandez explores ‘spectrum’ as both a continuum of color and a broad range of related things, feelings, and ideas by narrating stories through elements, people, and scenes from his image bank and his character Garapata. His creative process includes strategizing space, combining scenes and memories, disrupting composition by inserting gradient orbs, shapes and symbols, and graphic transformation of objects and figures. The resulting motifs are reworked on new ground and in video to create and provoke movement.”
–Con Cabrera, writer
“Spectrum Of So Far So Good” runs until Mar. 1 at Finale Art File, Gate 1, La Fuerza Compound, Warehouse 17, 2241 Chino Roces Ave, Makati
13. “I Think I Need New Glasses” by Erwin Canlas at RiseSpace Art Gallery
“Photographs of blurred and unfocused paper collages and florals take shape as saturated pictorial fields. In these photographic abstractions, viewers can find both a contrast in visual representation and in the process of image production. As a fashion photographer, my visual language in photography has been defined by calculation and precision. By contrast, my visual language in my practice as a contemporary artist seeks to explore the nuance of vision, beyond clarity and precision. This exhibit is the antithesis of both my work as a fashion and commercial photographer and my personal aesthetic sensibility. It is a reimagination of my identity, my way of seeing, as both a visual artist and image maker.”
–Erwin Canlas
“I Think I Need New Glasses” runs until Feb. 20 at RiseSpace Art Gallery, 2nd Floor, Unit 4, Comuna Bldg. A, 238 Pablo Ocampo Sr. Ext, Makati
READ: The Kifu Augousti-Patrick Coard wedding is a marriage born out of love and creative energy
14. “Barbae” by Goldie Poblador and Big Fuzz at WHYNoT
“I really enjoyed working with the team behind WHYNoT: Baby, Marta, Nana, and Coco. I’ve been busy with Art Fair Philippines, but they reached out and took care of the exhibition design, pairing me with the talented Kyle Quismundo and Josh of Big Fuzz. Really happy they were open with my concept. I think the drinks that reflected the two binaries of women—the virtuous and the vilified—and also the guitar effects that were the common language between Kyle and me, ended up working really well. Grateful for the experience.”
–Goldie Poblador
“Aside from being an incredible artist, Goldie is one of the warmest and most genuine people I’ve worked with. It was humbling to see her weave my stories into the ones she’s so passionate about telling, translating that vision into scent, sound, and spirits. This was one of those projects that felt more like play rather than work, which I hope to have more of with her!”
–Kyle Quismundo, mixologist and owner of Big Fuzz
“Barbae” is a one-night-only event. For more information on collaborations, performances, screenings, and talks produced by WHYNoT, visit them at 4th Floor Karrivin Studios, 2316 Chino Roces Avenue Extension, Makati
