Tatong Recheta Torres, "Fandom Vulgaris", detail

Three confident artists make for three fearless exhibits.  These three don’t shy away from taking their art to new directions.  Whether or not their explorations work, the attempts in themselves make their shows worth visiting.

Patricia Eustaquio, "Blue Eyes"

Patricia Eustaquio, Cloud Country

The title of this exhibit comes from Sylvia Plath’s Two Campers In Cloud Country, a poem from 1960 that extols the benefits of getting away from it all.  Patty’s Cloud Country series introduced us to her hybrid creatures, dead animals that have morphed into flowers.  I loved Horns In Cloud Country, shown at the Silverlens booth at this year’s edition of ArtHK 11.  That same weekend, another painting in the series, A Bird In Cloud Country, commanded furious bidding at Christie’s Spring Auctions.  She delivered another winner for Manilart 11 with Diving Bell (Cloud Country).

Patty has brought out six paintings for this show.  I thought that her hybrid creatures here appear more obvious, less naturally flowing and lyrical than her previous paintings.  Cloud Country landscapes have also made their debut (At least as far as I know.  I’m not sure if she has done landscapes as part of this series before).  Two of her paintings transform a landscape and one creature into its negative images, painted in black and white.

Trust Patty to also play with different materials to create new objects.  She has used small blocks of glass, engraved with prose or images, and minerals dipped in gold leaf, among others.  I’m not sure what to make of these pieces yet, or how they relate to each other and to the paintings. With Patty, I have learned that her initial experiments (as she has done with crocheted lace, ceramics, and cardboard) progress into even more interesting works.

I have frequently compared Patty’s art to the clothes she used to make as a fashion designer:  feminine but edgy, innovative, not always in sync, but definitely never boring.

Patricia Eustaquio, "A Bird In Cloud Country II"

Patricia Eustaquio, "Cloud Country"

Exhibit installation view

Patricia Eustaquio, "After Cloud Country" and "Afte A Bird In Cloud Country"

Patricia Eustaquio, "Look Up Where You Began" at the exhibit entrance

Patricia Eustaquio, "Untitled (Look Up Where You Began)

Patricia Eustaquio, "100,000 Years"

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Tatong Recheta Torres, Glutted Vertebrates

When Tatong switches on, as he does for this exhibit, he produces brilliant work.  We had a taste of this show in Manilart 11 (at the Art Informal booth).  In that untitled diptych, Tatong portrayed a man whose face was completely covered in fur. He painted in tones of black and white and gray.

Tatong Recheta Torres, "Fandom Vulgaris"

I recently caught a documentary about a family that suffered from hypertrichosis or werewolf syndrome, a condition that result in an excess amount of hair.  Tatong’s portraits in this series remind me of the people in that program.  He doesn’t just stick to human faces, however.  Pets, buildings, a bridge, have been subjected to the same treatment.  Each of his paintings has been framed in synthetic fur of various hues and densities.  They provide a fuzzy–and altogether apropos–finish to the pieces.

Tatong has always displayed a knack for translating his fascination with the freakish and off-kilter into compelling paintings, pieces that keep his viewers looking.  And looking. And looking.

Tatong Recheta Torres, "Gato"

Tatong Recheta Torres, "Taki"

Tatong Recheta Torres, "ZMP-AB"

Exhibit installation view

Exhibit installation view

Tatong Recheta Torres, "No Fur No Entry"

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Isa Lorenzo, 006, Incarnate

Of the three shows currently running at Silverlens, I enjoyed this show the most.  Isa’s photograms yielded surprises, one-off, dramatic images of mythological, fantastic creatures.  Unfortunately, my photos don’t capture their full effect.

Rachel Rillo, Isa’s partner and half of the force behind the gallery, attempted to give me a backgrounder on the process behind Isa’s work:  she composed them in a darkroom, essentially constructing them like she would collages, then exposed the work to light. I’m sure she gave me the simple version.  I won’t pretend I fully understand what it entailed to achieve these results.  Suffice it to say I find the outcome quite pleasing—to say the least.

Isa Lorenzo, "Hercules"

Isa Lorenzo, "Silenus"

Isa Lorenzo, "Equuleus" and "Mino"

Isa Lorenzo, "Indus"

Isa Lorenzo, "Delphinus"

Cloud Country, Glutted Vertebrates, and Incarnate run from 28 September to 22 October 2011 at SLab, 20Square, and Silverlens, 2F YDG Bldg., 2320 Pasong Tamo Extension, Makati City.  Phone (632) 816-0044 or visit www.silverlensphoto.com