Following a two-year journey of meticulous labor and reflection, BAMBOOVILLAGE presents “PASULONG: Recent Sculptures by Anton V. Quisumbing.” The exhibition has officially opened on Friday, May 15 in the Main Gallery, Y Space at the Yuchengco Museum, RCBC Plaza.
Curated by Miguel Rosales with exhibition design by Caramel Creative Consultancy, Pasulong marks a significant evolution in Quisumbing’s practice as he navigates the delicate intersection of destruction and rebirth.
In this latest collection, Anton returns to sculpture as a means of processing loss, longing, and repair. For two years, the artist arduously pieced together the remains of bronze propellers from boats damaged in the aftermath of Typhoon Odette in 2021. The results have yielded twenty-nine compositions that depict what it means to move forward—a journey that is never linear and parallels the artist’s return to three-dimensional objects after a solitary period practicing painting.
Time has reaffirmed that the artist’s strength lies in his adaptability to material and circumstance. Creating with his hands was the constant that kept him grounded and emotionally sound throughout the process. In working with bronze, the primary concern was its malleability, an experience similar to attempting to emerge from the heaviness of an upheaval that is both unforgiving and physically taxing.
The exhibition presents arcs and material curvatures that give rise to varied forms while initiating motion. Some shapes assume the semblance of spiritual symbols, standing steadfastly in place like moral compasses, while others present themselves as hurried strokes towards elsewhere, still yet to be determined.
courtesy of the artist.
“Pasulong” examines the trials and successes of the undertaking — to see what man can make in the aftermath of destruction — and serves as a prelude to Anton’s new direction in his artistic practice. Part of the ensemble is Sight, a piece that depicts a misshapen figure standing tall on its twisting metal base. Its almond-shaped eye runs horizontally across its center, while its armor on the left appears to shield it from external aggressors. This is only one of many in the collection that demonstrates lightness despite the weight of what we carry. As a testament to the artist’s total control over what he sees and melds, the outcome is not entirely dependent on the situation at hand.
The sculptures in “Pasulong” are glimpses into what Anton has endured: looking at the imperfections, attempting to make sense of the wreckage, and building something new. The exhibition marks his point of departure from painterly ways and into concrete forms of mending. Anton is taking this moment to acknowledge what he had to overcome and to forge ahead into the future.
