Contemporary Art Techniques and Performance Practices

Filipinos are proven to be one of the most creative and colorful people in the world. These
exceptional qualities of the Filipinos are exhibited in the types of arts that are produced in
different regions. People can come up with special artworks making use of the most available
local material found in their particular localities. Each region has its unique specialties of
products to take pride of like, for example, the “PAHIYAS” in Lucban, Quezon; the
“NIYOGYUGAN FESTIVAL” in Lucena, Quezon, the famous colorful most decorative lanterns of
San Fernando, Pampanga, and the noted wood carvings in Paete, Laguna. They are just
evidence that Filipinos are talented, shelfful and creative.

Local Materials to Contemporary Arts

Philippine is very rich in natural resources. With our artistic inclinations, we can maximize the
use of these natural resources even in creating arts. The environment abounds in giving us the
necessities that we need not only for a day to day consumption but also for works to keep us
financially stable and also to give us inspirations. The local materials that are available in the
locality help us hone and enhance our skills and talents in producing works of arts that can give
us pride and popularity.

Contemporary artists found used bottles, hay, rice stalks, plastic straw, and other recyclable
materials useful in creating artworks. They create artworks from wood, wire, thread, rattan,
metal and even leaves. The real artist sees beauty even from the peelings of garlic and corn.
The can combine red, yellow, green, and different other colors. Some regions or provinces
become noted for their unique artworks like the “PAHIYAS” Lucban, Quezon and
“NIYOGYUGAN FESTIVAL” in Lucena, Quezon. The artists in these places make use of the most
available materials found in their localities.

There are art forms which seem to be dying because the younger generations do not seem to
have an interest in about them. These are the following folk arts:

Sanikulas Cookie Mold Carvings (Pampanga)

These Sanikulas Cookies are arrowroot cookies that have the image of St. Nicholas molded on
it, ergo the name Sanikulas. St. Nicholas is also known as “The Healer” from illnesses. Legend
says that if you consume these cookies when you are ill, you get healed and recover in a shorter
amount of time that it would usually take.

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The molds are an exceptional piece of folk’s art and a rarity. Sanikulas cookie would commission
the carvers of these molds with one of a kind design. They would also have the initials of the
owner monogrammed on the molds. This is why it’s so rare and considered a family heirloom.
The molds are made of hardwood and are of different shapes and sizes. They would have been
a carved piece and a wooden presser.

Pabalot or Pastillas Wrapper Cutting Art (Bulacan)

The wrapper was made out of the delicate Japanese paper. The way to make it is so delicate
that only the ones with skilled hands and perfect control of their motor skills can produce the
best kind.

Taka (Laguna)

The art of “Taka” or “Taka – Making” is not an exclusive Pinoy art. Paper Mache and
discouraging have been around the centuries. In the Philippines, the first recorded or mention
of a created “Taka” was by a woman named Maria Bangue in the 1920s. She has wooden molds
that were covered with strips of paper clipped in the sticky paste. She would later paint them
carefully and present as children’s toys. Due to fire, none of the original takas were saved.

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Taka making became more popular during the American colonization period when there was an
excess of news print. And because Pinoy hates wasting anything, the people of Paete decided to
create more Takas and even diversified into different animals, not just the traditional horse.

Pagbuburda (Taal, Lumban, Laguna)

The art of embroiling is happily alive and flourishing the towns. Although it’s mostly done by the
women who are wives of the farmers and fishermen, it is not uncommon to see fishermen and
farmers who are also carefully and delicately embroidering floral designs during their “Off-
Season.”

A fairly type of Philippine folk art, Singkaban is the art of shaving bamboo into artful creations
that can be used as décor for arches or the home. Skilled craftsmen patiently shaved off the
bamboo, layer by layer, to create curls and delicate twirls of their bamboo.

Singkaban is usually a celebrating art. Singkaban craftsmen created these gregariously designed
bamboo arches for fiestas, weddings, and other celebrations that involve the entire community.
Perhaps, it is our sense of “Bayanihan” that inspire their art form ensuring that art is
appreciated and accessible to everyone in the community and their guests.

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Puni or Palm Leaf Folding (Bulacan)

Puni or palm leaf folding was intended to create artful toys for kids. However, puni can also be
used to create woven baskets, bags, and even fans. The most common presentation of Puni art
is the “Palaspas” we see every Holy Week. Because of the abundance of coconut leaves, the
Pinoys have ingeniously created toys and other items through Puni. Although fresh coconut
leaves are most commonly used, the leaves dry and crumble within the few days. It is more
common to use leaves that are dried treated and dyed for strength and color. These countless
artworks showcase not only the creativity of the Filipinos but most especially their ingenuity.

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 Traditional techniques to Contemporary Art Creations

There are places in the Philippines which are famous because of the extraordinary or unusual
special products that they produce. These products become the instruments in spreading the
news about these places. These people uses traditional techniques in creating one particular art
or maybe more which make them famous and draw people to these places. Traditional
techniques used by the Filipinos even from the past years are depicted in our painting,
sculpture, dance, architecture, music, and even textile. It only proves that Filipinos like any
other people in the world can be very proud of our Philippine arts.

Painting

Early Filipinos painting can be in red chip (clay mixed with water) designs embellished on the
ritual pottery of the Philippines such as the acclaimed “Manunggul Jar” which is an example of
a burial jar. Philippine pottery has been a long tradition, and evidence of this pottery-making
has been found in sanga-sanga, Sulu and Laurente Cave in Cagayan. Pottery began the making
of earthenware articles for domestic use as a cooking vessel and storage container. The early
pots were made by hand-molding or the use of paddle and vessel in building the walls of pots.
Pottery traditions continued to develop in certain locals, such as Burnay Unglazed Clay pottery
of Vigan, the pottery traditions of Burnay is among the pottery traditions that have been
maintained, along with those of Leyte and Bohol.

Further evidence of painting is manifested in the tattoo tradition of early Filipinos who are now
referred to as Pintados or the “Painted People” of Visayas. Various designs referring flora and
facing with heavenly bodies decorate their bodies various colored pigmentation. Some of the
most elaborate painting done by early Filipinos that survive to the present are manifested
among the arts and architecture of the Maranao, who are well-known for the “Naga Dragons”
and the “Sarimanok Craved” and painted in the beautiful Panolong of their Torongans or King’s
house. Among the early modernists painters such as Damian Domingo, Juan luna, Felix Hidalgo,
and others. A certain Elito Circa stood out; He is popularly known as “Amang Pintor” who
gained recognition by using his hair to make his paint brushes and reigns his painting with his
blood on the right side corner.

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Indigenous Art

The Itneg people are known for their intricate woven fabrics. The “Binakol” which features
designs that incorporate optical illusions woven fabrics of the “Gadang” people are usually
bright red ones. Their weaving can also be identified by beaded ornamentation. Other people
such as the Ilongot make jewelry from pearl, red horn-bill beak, plants, and metals. Some
indigenous materials are also used as a medium in different kinds of artworks especially in a
painting by Elito Circa. A folk artist of Pantabangan and a pioneer for using indigenous
materials, natural raw materials including human blood. Many Filipino painters were influenced
by this and started using these materials such as an extract from onion, tomato, tuba, coffee,
molasses and other materials available anywhere. The lumad people of Mindanao such as the
“B’Lan”, “Mandaga”, “Mansaka”, and “T’Boli” are skilled in the art of dyeing abaca fiber. Abaca
is a plant closely related to bananas and its leaves are used to make fiber known as “Manila
Hemp.” The fiber is dyed by a method called “Ikat.” Ikat fibers are woven into cloth with
geometric pattern depicting human, animal, and plant leaves.

Sarimanok is the most well-known design. The figure represents a fowl with wings, feathered
tail and a head decorated with ornaments of scrolled and painted motif of leaves, spirals and
feather-like forms. It usually stands on a fish, and another one hangs from its beak. The wooden
figure usually perched atop a bamboo pole, stands among decorative flags during weddings and
other festive occasions.

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Another one is “Hagabi,” a wooden chair of Ifugao, which symbolizes his status as a citizen in
their community. It depicts the wealth and power of the one who is called “Kadanagyan”, or a
person who belongs to the higher status in their society. Only the rich can afford to own it
together with a ritual after the completion of their chair. This chair is made of Narra or Ipil-Ipil,
and the original design is called “Ginulding- Gulding” meaning like a goat-like head.
At present Hagabi may have a different shapes one end which called “Ngiwi,” it is like the head
of an animal with an elongated nose and two big ears.

Hagabi

Islamic Arts

This kind of art has two main artistic styles. One is carved line. Woodcarving and metal working
called “Okir”, similar to the Middle Eastern Islamic art. This style of art is associated with men.
The other style is geometric tapestries and is associated with women. The Tausug and Sama-
Bajau exhibit their own “Okir” on elaborate markings with a boat like imaging. An Okir design,
the scroll is the dominant feature in the men’s work composed of various spiral forms. In
contrasts, the zigzag, and angular forms are the dominating motifs in women’s geometric art
“Okir-a-Bay” (ladies design). The most popular of the “Malong” style is the land cap which is
either dominantly red, yellow, green, blue or violet. Red is the favorite color along with yellow;
these colors stands for royalty and aristocracy. Often, men wear the red land cap and the
women, the yellow.

The “Bagobo” are proud people with proto Malayan features. They have ornate traditions in
weaponry and other metal arts. They are noted for their skills in producing brass articles
through the ancient lost-wax process. These people weave abaca cloths of earth tones and
make baskets that are trimmed with beads, fibers and horse’s hair, weapons made by Muslim
Filipinos such as “Kampilan”, are skillfully carved.

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Kut-Kut Art

This is a technique combing Oriental and European art process. Very few known art pieces exist
today. The techniques were practiced by the indigenous people of Samar. Kut-Kut is an exotic
Philippine art form based on early century techniques “Sgraffito”. Encaustic and layering. The
merging of this ancient styles produces a unique artwork characterized by delicate swirling
interweaved lines, multi-layered texture and an illusion of three dimensional space.

Performing Arts

Music
The early music of the Philippines featured a mixture of indigenous Islamic and variety of Asian
sounds. Spanish settlers and Filipinos played a variety of musical instruments, including flutes,
guitars, ukulele, violin, trumps, and drums. They performed songs and dances to celebrate
festive occasions. By the 21st century, many of the folk songs and dances have remained intact
all throughout the Philippines. Modern day Philippines music featured several styles. Most
music genres are contemporary such as Filipino rock, Filipino hip-hop, and another musical
style. Some are traditional such as Filipino folk music.

Dance
Philippine folk dances include the “Tinikling” and “Cariñosa.” In the southern region of
Mindanao, some is a popular dance showcasing the story of a prince and a princess in the
forest.

Architecture

The Spaniards introduced stones as housing and building materials. The introduction of
Christianity brought European Churches and architecture which subsequently became the
center of the mosyt towns and cities. Spanish architecture can be found in Intramuros manila,
Vigan, Lipa Batangas, Ilo-Ilo, jaro, Zamboanga City, Bacolod and other parts in the Philippines.

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In the past, the nipa hut (Bahay-Kubo) was the most common form of housing among the
native Filipinos. It is characterized by the use of simple materials such as bamboo and coconut
as the main source of wood. Cogon grass, and nipa palm leaves and coconut fronds are use as
roof thatching. Most primitive homes are built on stilts due to frequent flooding during the
rainiy season. The architecture of other indigenous people may be characterized by an angular
wodden roof, bamboo is placed leafy thatching and ornate wooden carvings.

Contemporary architecture has a distinctively western style although Pre-Hispanic housing are
still common in rural areas. American style suburban gated communities are popular in the
cities, including Manila and the surrounding provinces. Islamic often Asian architecture are
depicted on buildings such as Mosque and Temples.

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 Contemporary Art Production

Techniques and production go simultaneously. There is no production without any techniques.

Some contemporary artist did not study fine arts or any other formal studies about arts. Some
learn by interacting with other artist or studying on their own by going around, visiting places to
get ideas on what they would want to create. They even conduct experiments of materials,
especially recyclable ones, to find out which materials would work in the production of their
artwork. They adopt and construct their concept to integrate to their artwork production.
Careful planning of techniques and designs is done. The artist undergoes rigid practicing and
experimenting before finalizing the production of his particular artwork.

Artistic Skills and Techniques to Contemporary Art Creations

Collage

Collages are the techniques of an art production primarily used in visual arts, where the artwork
is made from the assemblage of different forms, thus creating a new whole. It may sometimes
include magazines and newspaper clippings, ribbons, paints , bits of colored or handmade
papers, portions of other artwork or texts, photographs, and other found objects, glued to a
piece of paper or canvas.

Decollage

Decollage is the opposite of collage; instead of an image is being built up all or parts of existing
images, it is created by cutting, treating away or otherwise removing pieces of an original
image. The French word “Decollage” in English means “Take-Off” or “to become unglued” or
“to become unstruck.”

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Examples of decollage include etresissements and cut-up technique. Similar technique is the
lacerated poster, a poster in which one has been placed over another or others, and the top
poster or posters have been ripped, revealing to a greater or lesser degree the poster or
posters underneath.

Graffiti

Graffiti are writings or drawings that have been scribbled, scratched, or painted illicitly on a wall
or other surface, often in a public space. Graffiti range from simple written words to elaborate
wall paintings. It may express underlying social and political messages, and a whole genre of
artistic expression is based spray paint graffiti styles.

Land Art

Earthworks or earth arts is an art movement in which landscape and the work of art are
inextricably linked. It is also an art form that is created in nature, using natural materials such as
soil, rock, organic media (logs, branches, leaves), and water which introduced materials such as
concrete, metal, asphalt, or mineral pigments. Sculpture is not placed in the landscape; rather,
the landscape is the means of their creation. The works frequently exist in the open, located
well away from civilization, left to change and erode under natural conditions.

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Digital Arts

It is an artistic work or practice that uses digital technology as an essential part of the creative
or presentation process. Digital art is placed under the larger umbrella term new media art.
After some resistance, the impact of digital technology has transformed activities such as
paintings, drawings, sculpture, and music/sound art, while new form such as net art. Digital
installation art and virtual reality have become recognized artistic practices. More generally the
term digital artist is used to describe an artist who makes use of digital technologies in the
production of art.

“Digital Art” is a term applied to contemporary art that uses the method of mass production or
digital media. The techniques of digital art are used extensively by the mainstream media in
advertisements and by film-makers to produce visual effects. Both digital and traditional artist
use many sources of electronic information and programs to create their work.

Mixed-Media

In visual art, it refers to artwork in the making of which more than one medium has been
employed. It refers to a work of visual art that combines various traditionally distinct visual art
media. For example, work on canvas that combines paint, ink, and collage. When creating a
painted or photographed work using mixed media, it is important to choose the layers carefully
and allow enough dying time between the layers to ensure the final work will have structural
integrity. If many different media are used, it is equally important to choose a sturdy
foundation upon which the different layers are imposed. Many effects can be achieved by using
mixed media. Found objects can be used in conjunction with the traditional artist to attain wide
range of self-expression.

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Concept of Integrated Arts Production

We perceive that all artworks are beautiful, but sometimes they may not be. The idea of
artwork depends upon the concept of an artist. There are times that an artist through his
artwork may convey a strong reaction about the present human conditions which may not be
beautiful.

An artist does not work alone. He interacts with other artist and through these interactions he
can grasp ideas that help him formulate his concept that he can integrate in to the production
of his artworks. In the production of artwork, the artist interconnects these terms: arts, design,
and craft. These three terms are distinctive in function but are interrelated with each other.
Any piece of article, or anything that pleases a man, involves art, designs and craft. An example
is mat weaving. This is a simple craft activity, yet involved in it are ideas, principles and skills
which exists in the minds, muscles or nerves of the mat weaver. The hand manipulation, its
order, and sequences, has rhythm, balance, skill and organization and the feel or texture of the
product reveals the application of art, designs and craftsmanship. Hence, these are evident in
the interwoven relationship of art, designs and crafts.

Subjects

Subjects refer to any person, object, scene or event described or represented in a work of art.
Some arts have subjects; others do not. The arts that have subject are “Representational” or
“Objective Arts.” Those that do not have subject are called “Non-Representational” or “Non-
Objective Arts.”

Painting, sculpture, graphic arts, literature and the theater arts are classified as
representational while music, architecture, and many of the functional arts are non-
representational. The non-objective arts do not present descriptions, stories, or references to
identifiable objects or symbols. Rather, they appeal directly to the senses primarily because of
the satisfying organization of their sensor and expressive elements.

Most contemporary painters have turned away from the representational to non-objective
painting. They have shifted their attention to the work of art as an object itself, as an exciting
combination of shapes and colors that fulfills and aesthetic need without having to represent
images or tell a story.

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Kinds of Subjects

a. Landscapes, seascapes and cityscapes

b. Still Life
c. Animals
d. Portraits
e. Everyday Life
f. History and Legend
g. Figures
h. History and Mythology
i. Dreams and Fantasies

Medium

Medium refers to the material or means which the artist uses to objectify his feeling or
thoughts; Pigments in painting; stone, architecture; sounds in music, words in literature; and
body movements in the dance.

When an artist proceeds to give shape to his vision, his first thoughts are on what medium to
employ. There are no fixed rules in governing the choice of materials and processes to use. An
artist choice is usually influenced by practical considerations as the availability of material, the
use to which the art object will be put, the idea that he wants to communicate, and nature and
specially the characteristics of the medium itself. The artist normally selects the material that
he can handle well, and that would best suit his purpose as well as adequately bring out the
qualities that he wants to show.

Form

Form refers to the physical qualities or characteristics of the image. It’s about the use of color,
lines, space and other elements. These elements are arranged to observe unity, harmony,
rhythm and other principles of design in the production of a particular artwork.

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Creation of Final Product

The man has tried to understand and control his environment of life. Using nature or his guide,
he has formulated a basic idiom with which to communicate the vision of life and the reality
that surrounded it. The painter or sculptor sees shape, color, texture and space in nature.
He uses them, manipulate them and organize them and into the production of an artwork,
these are called the elements of visual arts.

The Elements of Visual Arts

Line
The line is man’s invention. It has many qualities which the artists exploit. They may be short or
long, fine or thick, heavy or light, wavy or jagged, straight or waved. They usually delineate
shapes. Used across on within a shape, they give the effect of solidity or create an illusion of
volume, or rough or smooth texture. A painter can use lines to simulate the gentle movement
of the flowing river, the graceful swaying of trees, or the sharpness of crags.

Direction and Movement of Lines

A. Horizontal Line – creates an impression of serenity and perfect stability.

B. Vertical Line – appears poised and stabled.
C. Diagonal Line – implies action; an artist uses this line to convey a feeling of unrest, certainly
and movement.
D. Curved Line – results when there is a gradual change of direction; it shows fluidity.
E. Circular Line – abrupt change of direction.

Shape
Our world is composed of a variety of shape, some of which, because of constant use have
gained permanent meanings. They can be used to simplify ideas. Shapes may be natural,
abstract, non-objective, or geometric; natural shape is those we see in nature such as shapes of
men, animals or trees. They may be interpreted realistically, or they may be distorted. Abstract
shapes are formed after the artist have drawn out the essence of the original object and made
it the subject of his work.

Shape in Painting is an area on flat surface enclosed by a line. It stands out from the surface
because of difference in color, value, texture or a combination of these.

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Shape in Sculpture since sculpture is three dimensional, shapes are identifies as mass or as
volume. Mass is a matter that has weight and solidity.

Shape in architecture is a house, a church or an office building has a shape of its own, define by
its walls and roofs. The individual parts that compose each building and other structures
depend upon the materials and type of the construction used.

Texture
When we speak of texture, we usually refer to the feel or tactile quality of the surface of an
object, whether the surface is rough or smooth, grooved or ridged, funny or silly. For the
sculptor and architect, texture results chiefly from the physical properties of the materials they
use. The sculptor can produce any blend of texture that he wants his work to have. While an
architect can use brick and wood to produce patterns on the walls and positions.

Color
Color is not a permanent property of things we see around us. It is derived from light whether
like sunlight, or artificial, like the fluorescent light. Under a weak light we see some color, but
under a bright light, we see more color. It is the sense of wavelengths which strike our retina.
Every ray of light coming from the sun is compound of different waves which vibrate at
different speed. We can confirm this scientific fact if we allow a beam of light to pass through a
prism.

Since a beam of light contains all the different colors, why do we see natural objects as having
color? Any object has a color quality called pigmentation which enables it to absorb some of
the colors and reflects only one. A red rose appears red because it reflects red waves of light
and absorbs all others. Some objects do not have color; some are black, gray or white. These
are not present in the color spectrum. They do not have any color quality. Instead, they differ in
the quality of life that they reflect. They are called neutral colors since they do not reflect all
colors and gray results from a partial reflection.

Physical Properties of color

Hue – the quality which gives color its name. The colors of the spectrum are therefore called
hues.

Value – adding neutral such as black or white to any hue (e.g. blue or red) results in changing
the quality of light it reflects.

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Intensity or Saturation – Intensity is the strength of the color’s hue. It refers to the quality of
light in a color.

Uses of color
- Color may give spatial quality to the pictorial field
- Color may create a mood and symbolize ideas and express personal emotions
- Color has the ability to arouse sensations of pleasure because of a well ordered system
of tonality.

Value
It is the tonal relationship between light and dark areas in the painting. Value is an element that
must be considered about other elements such as line, color, texture, and shape. These
elements show some value contrasts.

In paintings, patterns resulting from tonal shapes appear as lights and shadows which
camouflage the outlined colored forms. Examples are in the works of Caravaggio, Luna Hidalgo
and another artist who used chiaroscuro, the use of light for expressive effects resulted in the
development of two styles known as chiaroscuro and tenebrous. Chiaroscuro refers to the
technique which concentrates on the effects of blending light and shade on objects to create an
illusion of space and atmosphere. Tenebrous is the style of painter to make use of a larger
amount of dark areas beside smaller areas of light for emphasis.

Space and Movement

It exists as an “illusion” in the graphic arts, but in sculpture and architecture, it is present.

There are two basic types of space in painting:

1. Decorative space is the depthless space that exists across the plane rather than in it.
2. Plastic space is the term applies to the third dimension which is a matter of “illusion” in the
case of painting.

Space in sculpture may be viewed in two different ways. First, it may be considered as a single
solid or an assemblage of solids that inhabits space and secondly, it may be seen or it enters in
relation with surrounding space extending into it, enveloping it, or relating across it.

Space in architecture is created and defined by the shape, the position, and the materials
employed by the architect.

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