MANILA, PHILIPPINES – The Cultural Center of the Philippines’ Visual Arts and Museum Division (VAMD) supports the first online iteration of Art by the Bay, a project of the Association of Pinoyprintmakers (AP). As early as April this year, CCP VAMD and AP got together to think of ways to support local printmakers. CCP Vice President and Artistic Director Chris Millado, a regular visitor of Art by the Bay, suggested to try shifting Art by the Bay online.
Art by the Bay is AP’s bi-annual open house event that is usually held at their studio in the back of the Folk Arts Theater in the CCP Complex. It started in 2010 as AP’s annual Christmas gathering. For ten years now, Art by the Bay has grown an audience of artists, enthusiasts, collectors, and students, locally and internationally. With a glass of wine on one hand and the excellent view of Manila Bay, visitors of Art by the Bay can take part in various activities such as print sales, raffles of artworks, artist discussions, printmaking demos, and just enjoy each other’s company. The selling of works in Art by the Bay raises funds for the association’s annual programs and the maintenance of their studio, and supports the sustainability of the printmaking practice of many artists.
With the theme of “reconnection and healing,” Art by the Bay online advocates to bring people together once again to enjoy art and the camaraderie and compassion that comes with it. It aims to help people use art to reconnect with their loved ones and communally hope for healing from the current situation. This online platform allows Art by the Bay attendees to continue to participate in this yearly anticipated event, and at the same time also gives artists the opportunity to sustain their increasingly precarious practice through the selling of their artworks.
Art by the Bay runs from November 7 to 14, 2020 at www.artbythebay.ph. The website will be launched at 10am of November 7, in the CCP and AP’s Facebook pages www.facebook.com/culturalcenterofthephilippines and www.facebook.com/philippineprintmaking. Other online activities will be held every other day beginning November 7, and will be capped off with a print raffle on November 14, open to all those who purchased a print from the website.
