300 resin figures, each one unique, are currently lined up in the Pasilyo Vicente halfway gallery in CCP. The weird, even grotesque figurines form one long line in the hallway, and despite their unique appearances they all look uniformly ubiquitous when behind one another.
“Living in this day and age, falling in line or getting in line is the most accursed thing that starts one’s day,” Rasel Trinidad, or his alias Doktor Karayom explains. The exhibit, entitled “Linya,” is Trinidad’s third and biggest one yet. “This waiting consumes more time than actual travel. It makes us point to and find fault in the people in line or in those that implement the rules. It makes us think, is this divine intervention? One is not sure, really. Maybe this line will make man reveal his true colors and intentions that are either opaque or translucent like the soul, or one’s outlook that floats while waiting in this rank and file life that makes us human, but, actually, closer to cattle and sheep.”
We talked to Doktor Karayom online about himself and his work. Here are the edited excerpts:
Where did you get the idea for “Linya”?
It’s based on the daily experiences we have here in our motherland, a way to criticize something we’re used to, something everyone has experienced…falling in line. I was one of those chosen by CCP from their open call. I still don’t believe it up to now.
What medium did you use for your latest exhibit?
The sculptures are made with epoxy and resin and painted with acrylic paint and spraypaint.
Why Doktor Karayom?
‘Karayom’ because it sounds very unique. It’s based on the Filipino saying “kahit butas ng karayom papasukin ko” so it’s about how I work hard to achieve my dreams or whatever. And then I added doktor because I like horror, gore and shows and movies that have operatiosn in it. So I thought about my work and how they look painful…they’re not relaxing or something you would want on your shelf to display. It’s like it’s teaching you a lesson. I researched about what people felt when they looked at my work and then I thought it’s like I’m injecting something inside their body that affects their emotions. I don’t fashion myself as a doctor in a hospital. I’m a mananambal or a hermit that uses prayer, the rebulto and the orasyon to heal people that don’t have money for the hospital…something like that, haha. There isn’t any other cure to the sickness of man, but man himself.
What’s your old job?
I was a graphic designer before.
Is this your first exhibit?
No, it’s actually my third.
Are you a full time artist?
Yes I’ve committed myself to my art full time. I thought about it and felt that if you love something you need to spend time on it and just on it. That’s why I resigned from my day job.
What do you do when you’re not making art?
When I don’t make art, I sleep, I go out and look at my surroundings, I play Counter Strike, I romance, I play music with my friends. I also look at the pirated screenings in Baclaran and have foodtrips at Angel’s Burger.
“Linya,” the solo exhibition featuring Doktor Karayom is open from October 12 to November 13 at the second level of the CCP Main Theater at the Pasilyo Vicente halfway gallery.
Viewing Hours: Tuesday to Sunday from 10 AM – 6 PM with more information, contact the Visual Art & Museum Division, Production & Exhibition Department at: (632) 832 1125 local 1504|1505 or (632) 832 3702
Mobile: (0917) 603 3809
Email: ccp.exhibits@gmail.com
Photos from CCP