The exhibit is a collection of still life acrylic paintings arranged in unlikely pairs and surprising binaries, combining both the artisanal and artifactual.
The works in Two Things are small and portable images of everyday objects juxtaposed against each other and set against Spartan and scrubbed walls. Their size and subject matter both work to create a sense of familiarity and comfort, in stark contrast to the imposing scale, grandness and immobility often exuded by larger than life canvases. These are far from being portraits of the wantonly abject, degraded and
torn; instead, they are accidental visions of things left behind, picked up along the way. Portrayed in muted tones and exhibiting a momentary stillness, the paintings give off a sense of fluid repose, like that of sunlight streaming through water.
Castro’s formal foray into painting marks a turn in his output as a visual artist. Mainly working as a graphic and book designer over the past years, he recently rekindled a fascination with painting, producing this series of works since August 2012. Castro finds that painting—from the physical and spontaneous act of wielding the brush to letting loose coincidental choices and random musings—is a cathartic experience that deviates from the precise deliberation and purposiveness needed to visualize and execute graphic design projects. This first exhibition is his foray into the painter’s ways of seeing.
On view from January 9 until February 8, 2014 at Silverlens Gallery.
For inquiries, contact 816-0044, 0917-5874011, or email [email protected].
Silverlens Galleries is located at 2/F YMC Bldg. II, 2320 Don Chino Roces Ave. Ext. Makati. Gallery hours are Monday to Friday 10AM– 7PM and Saturdays 1–6PM.
Cover: Nikita McElroy
