ILOMOCA celebrates the art of printmaking in ‘Proven and Printed: ILOMOCA Print Festival 2023’

To the average person, printmaking is both familiar and unfamiliar: while the art itself is something they have likely seen at least once, the process of creation isn’t always as well known. To bring this contemporary art form closer to Filipinos, the Iloilo Museum of Contemporary Art (ILOMOCA) opens to the public its last major show for 2023: Proven and Printed: ILOMOCA Print Festival 2023.

Opening on October 7 to coincide with the “Museums and Galleries Month,” Proven and Printed: ILOMOCA Print Festival 2023 is headlined by three exhibitions focusing on this practice:

• CCP@ILOMOCA: Potential, Potency, and Women PrintmakersSecond Floor Galleries (Runs until March 2024)This exhibition features a selection of prints from the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ (CCP) 21st Century Art Museum (21AM) Collection by female artists Ileana Lee, Ofelia Gelvezon-Tequi, Ambie Abaño, Glenna Aquino, Ivi Avellana-Cosio, Kristen Cain, Yas Doctor, Lenore R. S. Lim, Hershey Malinis, Caroline Ongpin, Henrielle Baltazar Pagkalinawan, Imelda Cajipe Endaya, Brenda Fajardo, Petite Calaguas, and Evelyn Collantes to name a few.

• BAKAS | Filipina ImprintsHulot Gallery (Runs until  January 2024)This exhibition features works by Filipina printmakers as an effort to put the printmaking practice of Filipina printmakers front and center. It features the works of artists Ambie Abaño, Marz Aglipay, Marge Chavez, Marina Cruz, Imelda Cajipe Endaya, Irma Lacorte, Hershey Malinis, Fara Manuel, Maya Muñoz, Gabi Nazareno, Henrielle Pagkaliwangan, and Angela Silva. This project is also envisioned to help encourage the appreciation for expanded printmaking techniques through intergenerational works and perspectives.

• Print Exchange+ @ILOMOCAGround Floor Lobby (Runs until December 2023)The print exchange features works by Benjie Torrada Cabrera, Don Kusuanco, Elmer Borlongan, Elwah Gonzalez, Hannah Nantes, Jam Rosal, Kristen Cain, Leonard Aguinaldo, Mars Bugaoan, Melai Arguzon, Noel Epalan, Noell EL Farol, Plet Bolipata, Radel Paredes, Resty Cruz Flores, Tammy De Roca, Tin Palattao, Touki Roldan, Wesley Valenzuela, and William Matawaran.

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Filipinas making waves in printmaking
All three exhibits in the ILOMOCA Print Festival are curated and organized by women, namely, Con Cabrera from the CCP Visual Arts and Museum Division (CCP@ILOMOCA: Potential, Potency, and Women Printmakers), Marika Constantino and Georgina Luisa O. Jocson (BAKAS | Filipina Imprints), and Angela Silva (Print Exchange+ @ILOMOCA). It is important to note that the first two exhibitions, in particular, are all-female exhibitions.

“Not many Filipinos know much about printmaking nor the significant role women play in cultivating this art form, and that is exactly what we want to change through Proven and Printed: ILOMOCA Print Festival 2023. This is our way of letting the public become familiar with printmaking and how Filipina printmakers have been helping shape and grow this art form in the country. We wish for ILOMOCA to serve as a hub where the unique, contemporary art form of printmaking can further thrive,” says Maricel Montero, museum director, ILOMOCA.

Proven and Printed: ILOMOCA Print Festival 2023 also marks the first time the CCP goes to Iloilo through CCP@ILOMOCA: Potential, Potency, and Women Printmakers, whose main highlight will be the works of Visayan artist Ileana Lee, who hails from Sarabia, Negros Occidental.

“True to its mission of promoting gender equality, diversity, and inclusion, the Cultural Center of the Philippines has been creating platforms and facilitating programs that pursue and address these social issues. Through its CCP Gender and Development Committee, the center is concerned with women as well as with the social construction of gender and the assignment of specific roles, responsibilities, and expectations to women and men. And there is no better tool to raise awareness of gender equality and advocate empowering the community than the arts. In this exhibit, we focus on the involvement and contribution of women printmakers in the founding of the Association of Pinoy Printmakers and how their artistic sensibilities deepen the appreciation of this art form,” says Dennis N. Marasigan, CCP Artistic Director and Gender and Development Committee Chair.

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Experiencing printmaking firsthand
Meanwhile, guests can learn more about printmaking and observe how these are done firsthand at the Print Fair. On October 7, printmaking demonstrations by selected artists who are part of BAKAS | Filipina Imprints will be held, as well as guided tours and Art Talk by CCP.

On November 4 and 11, some artists who are part of Print Exhange+ @ILOMOCA will conduct printmaking workshops that aim to teach participants the different styles of printmaking, namely: Introduction to Relief Rubbercut Printmaking and Introduction to Drypoint Intaglio Printmaking.

Proven and Printed: ILOMOCA Print Festival 2023 is made possible by Fundador: The World’s Best Brandy, Iloilo Business Park, Festive Walk Iloilo, the Iloilo City Government and Iloilo City MICE Center, and POMM.ph.

ILOMOCA, the first museum in Visayas and Mindanao dedicated to modern and contemporary art, is located within Casa de Emperador at Festive Walk Parade in Iloilo Business Park. It is open Tuesdays to Sundays from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., with regular tickets available for P150. Discounted tickets for senior citizens and PWDs (P120) and students (P100) are also available.

Meanwhile, from today until December 2023, frequent visitors of ILOMOCA may avail of a VIP Membership Card, available at the front desk for P1,500. The ILOMOCA VIP Membership Card is valid for 12 months and comes with various perks, such as a welcome gift upon purchase of the card, free admission for the cardholder and one (1) companion, invitation to museum openings, 20% discount on rental fee for events such as photo shoots, 20% discount on workshops, seat reservation for two (2) during Artist Talks, free Museum Tour Guide upon appointment, and group discount for every five (5) additional companions.

For inquiries, contact ILOMOCA on Facebook (@ILOMOCA) and Instagram (@itsilomoca), or through email at iloilomuseumofcontemporaryart@gmail.com