Artist Louie Cordero takes viewers to new visual destinations in Pilgrimage to Semina Mountains. His latest one-man exhibit at West Gallery, SM Megamall, opens on September 18 and runs until September 30.
Describes Cordero, “It’s an ongoing project of mine, which consists of video, sculptures, paintings, books, and music. [It is about] the legend of the “Dutchboyz,” five Filipino stuntmen in the 1970s who migrated to the European Alps to find the meaning of life through the stigmata from their faces.”
Cordero is currently fascinated with religious cults and mystical phenomena, especially in creating something through art, symbols, and objects. He once said that he is afraid of blood, but finds it exciting to paint it because he has some control over it. He revels in the freedom he enjoys as an artist to approach or interpret a given subject or theme. Compared to his previous body of work, his new set of works “is much tighter because I have to be more focused on certain themes, limiting myself to certain colors and certain images to create an environment.”
This environment in Pilgrimage to Semina Mountains includes fiberglass sculptures and two paintings of the European Alps. Adds Cordero, “I will be creating a mountain, and on top are five men praying. Their bleeding faces will likewise be captured in 20 wall-bound sculptures.” Cordero, a full-time painter, reveals he’s had to do more research for this series of works because he wanted to present it as precisely as he could, paying close attention to detail.
“I don’t have any strategies on changing art or whatsoever. The bottom line is to do what you want to do and enjoy it.”
He still does not know whether his next set of works will be following the same theme, but he is willing to wait and even rest to figure out what to do next. One thing he knows is that his work is not yet done, and one of his dreams is to mount a biennale in his hometown, Malabon City, one day.
Louie Cordero majored in painting at the College of Fine Arts of the University of the Philippines. In 2006, he was one of the recipients of the CCP Thirteen Artists Award.
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