The Bus and the Driver Present Elemental Majica

Elemental Majica - Bacolod City 43rd Masskara Festival - Orange Project Gallery - Art District - Bacolod artists - Charlie Co, Bong Lopue - opening

This year, the 43rd MassKara Festival in Bacolod City has given a lot of opportunities for different sectors to showcase their talents and interests. From the artists’ community in the Orange Project, they are presenting Elemental Majica–a mix of the unknown and the reality.

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~ Opening of Elemental Majica. ~

What is Elemental Majica

“Elemental Majica” opened its doors last October 15. It is the most in-depth and wide-range collaborative exhibition of over 60 artists who have worked ceaselessly for months to transport art lovers to a world of magic through art installations, sculptures, paintings, music, and dance. There is even an interactive AI installation from foreign artists, among others.

At the helm of the event are Bacolod artists, Charlie Co and Bong Lopue, the men behind Orange Project who have nurtured and provided space for local artists for almost two decades now.

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~ Charlie Co and Bong Lopue with Andre and Juliana Vrady. ~

While the art community looks at them as “rock stars” in the Bacolod art scene, Bong and Charlie allude to themselves as merely “the bus and the driver” respectively.

“Bong created the bus and I am just the driver,” Charlie said, adding that after 18 years of their partnership journey, “we have a bus filled with artists that are slowly creating names for themselves, not just in our country but elsewhere.”

About the Bus and the Driver

Bong hails from the Lopue clan who are known in the business community. But his “passion” remains in the arts and some years ago, he went into a verbal partnership with an already established Bacolod artist, Charlie. The agreement was that both of them were to provide a space where local artists can freely express their views, emotions, and works.

Their initial venture was the Orange Gallery but eventually, Bong expanded this into a state-of-the-art Orange Project gallery and converted the entire complex into what we call now the “Art District.”

At the Art District

Depending on where you enter, two massive sculptures will greet you. One is the towering sculpture entitled “Rock on” by Rafael Paderna. The second one is the “Atomic Love” installation art that was a collaborative work from Tristam Miravalles, Micki Boy Pama, Brandon Braza, Zabiel Nemenzo, Zanna Jamili, Zander Lopez, and Megumi Miura.

bus and the driver, Elemental Majica, Orange Project, Orange Gallery, magic, MassKara Festival, 43rd MassKara Festival, Bacolod City, Bong Lopue, Charlie Co, Bacolod artists, art installations, sculptures, Art District,
~ Veteran Bacolod artist, Rafael Paderna. ~

Tristam conceptualized “Atomic Love,” getting inspiration from the war in Ukraine. A father of three girls, Tristam wants to send a message of bombing each other with love rather than with firepower. This installation is encircled on the floor by the graffiti art of John Crimson, Chester Somes, and Aneks.

In all the nooks and crannies of the Art District hang works of local artists. Some of them have names while others remain unknown. But in the art world, they are being given an opportunity to display their works beside artists they look up to.

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In one corner, five aerialist figures with masks hang. These were created by Leah Samson, Leizel Dator, Carmel Hibaler, Joy Delliva, and Dennis Valenciano who went through a process of observing the aerialists manipulate their cloth as they hang from the ceiling in the Mandala Centering Place owned by Kitty Cooper. She also performed during the opening day.

A tour that will run for three months starts as you enter the mouth of the “Circus Owl” by JunJun Montelibano and pass through the mural of Faye Abantao whose inspiration stemmed from her recent artist in residency training in Palawan.

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Meanwhile, as you open the doors to the gallery, another door made from recycled materials stand as the entrance to the exhibit. The second doorway and the walls were installed by Perry Argel from trash and objects he found in the streets. Perry, 65, is one of the original founders of Pamilya Pintura with renowned artist Nunelucio Alvarado.

The collaboration artwork of Charlie Co and Neil Benavente will stir your emotions, especially “Balay ni John D,” which is reminiscent of “Tokhang” and recreated by the Orange staff in a makeshift room. In the middle of the room is Charlie’s famous “Chinaman” figure holding a gun and on the floor is a covered figure which represents the victim in the controversial extra-judicial killings that hounded the previous administration.

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Floating hands with strings attached the gunman signifies the powers behind the orders to kill. Yet as you turn around to look at what the gunman is staring it at, you will see a picturesque, peaceful painting by Leah Samson. The contradictory elements in the room show the conflicting reality we are in, of peace and chaos.

An Interactive AI Installation

One interesting addition on the opening day is the interactive AI installation from couple Andre and Juliana Vrady. Russians by origin, both are now living in Germany. They met Charlie during the Dubai exposition early this year.

They have been filming the artists at work in the last 15 days and through their patented mood converter software, they were able to capture the emotions of the artists. These colourful moods with red as a manifestation of anger and yellow, that of joy, mixed with other colors representing various emotions turn into an abstract artwork in itself.

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“We are presenting a dialog between human and technology and how technology perceives us as human beings,” Juliana explained. This is their first time collaborating with over 60 artists and they described their installation as a cross between “art and science.”

Inside the gallery as well is an interesting installation made by a group of five fashion design students from Carlos Hilado Memorial State College in Talisay City, Negros Occidental led by Red Santillan. The school has given them notice that they might dissolve the curriculum from their college and when they approached Orange, Charlie told them “we will give you the platform and space to convince your mentors that you are worthy of continuing your education in that field.”

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~ Guests during the opening of Elemental Majica. ~

In the words of artist, Guinevere Decena, “Majica is dedicated to providing an opportunity for local artists to express their reflections on the different perspectives surrounding the annual Masskara Festival celebrated in Bacolod City.”

Indeed, “Elemental Majica” is a different offering in the 18 years of Majica exhibition as “it looks into the complex presence of humanity. This core of coming together to work in an environment of harmony is the challenge, the message, and the magic,” Decena added.  

bus and the driver, Elemental Majica, Orange Project, Orange Gallery, magic, MassKara Festival, 43rd MassKara Festival, Bacolod City, Bong Lopue, Charlie Co, Bacolod artists, art installations, sculptures, Art District,

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