MANILA, PHILIPPINES– SILVERLENS is thrilled to present Masks and Spirits, a solo exhibition by the late Filipino-American artist, Pacita Abad. The show, which lifts its title from Abad’s celebrated series, will feature five vibrant large-scale trapunto paintings from 1982 through 1994.
While the gallery has shown Abad’s Masks and Spirits works outside the Philippines these last two years – in Art Basel Hong Kong and Frieze London – this exhibition marks the first time her pieces will be gathered and displayed in Silverlens’ space. We graciously extend an invitation to the public, on the anniversary of Abad’s birth month, for this special homecoming exhibition.
Pacita Abad was the living embodiment of a global spirit. In her fifty-eight years, she resided in five different continents and worked in over eighty countries. Consequently, her artistic practice was greatly informed by her extensive travels. Countless diverse experiences furnished Abad with a plethora of ideas, techniques, and materials – all of which she shrewdly incorporated into her art. It was during her time in Africa in the mid-1980s that prompted her to begin painting Masks and Spirits, a monumental series in her artistic career.
It was there where she began to experiment with the medium that came to identify her practice, trapunto paintings. Inspired by tribal masks from the world’s most remote areas, Abad created over fifty of these large, hand-stitched, colourfully embellished trapunto works in her lifetime. This series was a turning point in Abad’s artistic approach: not only did the scale of her works change, her aesthetic style likewise shifted from figurative realism to mystical abstract figuration.
Representative of her cross-cultural practice, Masks and Spirits embodies the values Abad held as an artist; they reflect socio- political commentaries while vividly celebrating tribal customs. An internationally prominent series, seven of these trapunto works currently hang in the eleventh edition of the Berlin Biennale; three are in the collection of the Tate London, and are scheduled to exhibit at the Tate Liverpool next month. After decades of travel, we feel very privileged to share in the tremendous honour of hosting these Masks and Spirits paintings in our gallery.
Masks and Spirits will be on view onsite alongside Ziggurat by Norberto Roldan and Apothecary: Prelude by Yvonne Quisumbing until 21 November 2020.
While the physical space is open, gallery visits are strictly by appointment only. Interested visitors may schedule here. The exhibition can also be accessed through a digital catalogue, which will be released on 17 October 2020 at 10:00 AM, Manila time (GMT +8). For more information, please contact info@silverlensgalleries.com or +63 917 587 4011.
