Capping off the success of the 2018 UP Diliman Arts Month is its public art installation dubbed as LAWAS.
Part of this year’s theme, “Kat(h)awan: Bodies, Culture, Society”, LAWAS is a three-man public art project with Agnes Arellano’s Pleiades, Mark Justiniani’s Pusod, and Pagpamulak by Lee Paje.
“This installation explores the intricate process of dwelling the body and probes the limits of the body, often imagined to be a vessel or a contained space,” the LAWAS Public Art statement reads.
The sculptural pieces are found at the campus’s open grounds where they are accessible and interactive. During its launch on April 11, the art pieces were used as sites of several art performances by Al Bernard Garcia, Sarah Samaniego, and the UP Dance Company, signifying offerings to these artworks.
Pleiades are cast stone goddesses, which reflect Arellano’s lifelong search for the sacred feminine. Pusod, on the other hand, is made up of a reflective disk that rests on the ground as it reflects the skies above. While Pagpamulak, which means ‘to blossom’ in the vernacular, is composed of sculptural works of phallic symbols that one may sit or lie on, LAWAS curators explained.
LAWAS is curated by Professors Tessa Maria Guazon and Cecilia De la Paz of the UP Department of Art Studies. The public installation will be on view until end August. A series of events will be launched in June, July and August in line with the public art exhibit, according to Prof. Guazon. (Stephanie S. Cabigao, UP MPRO)
