WWF-Philippines
President and CEO Joel Palma says, “The Philippines is one of the 17
mega-diverse countries in the world, home to more than half of the world’s
species. We are very excited to have
five of the nation’s top artists
join our battle to conserve nature in the face of climate change. We hope that through art, we continue to
raise awareness on the urgent need to step up environmental action to protect
earth’s biodiversity.”
Living
in harmony with nature, man’s role in conservation and the concept of
sustainability and home were just some of the themes explored in the pieces
created for the collection. BenCab’s
“Kapit-Bisig” and Borlongan’s “Wildlife Rehabilitator” highlight the importance
of man living in consonance with nature.
Justiniani’s “Kugos” (Carry) presents a caretaker donning a suit in the
panda’s likeness to care for and protect the orphans of the species. Santos’
idea of saving and salvaging materials through his art is reflected in his piece
titled “Natural Selection” while Javier’s work entitled “Home” is inspired by
her community in the province, stressing the importance of a sustainable
environment.
Though
they had different approaches in creating their pieces for the collection,
WWF’s Art Ambassadors are united in their call for people to save the
environment. Borlongan shared that his particular concern is the destruction of
our oceans. Living 10 minutes away from the West Philippine Sea, he has been a
witness to how acts like dynamite fishing can harm both the environment and
fisherfolk who have lost limbs due to this practice; and has already created
art pieces tackling this issue.
Both
BenCab and Javier shared that plastic waste is among their most urgent
concerns. They stressed the importance of setting a good example when it comes
to conservation.
“We
have to have discipline in cleaning up our surroundings and planting trees,”
said BenCab. He shared that among one of his contributions is in his museum in
Baguio, where he has planted many indigenous trees in the area.
Meanwhile,
Javier has started planting vegetables in her home to help provide food and
additional income for the community living near her. She also tries to instill
practices in her household that will lessen plastic consumption such as bringing
reusable containers, baskets or eco-bags when she goes shopping or does her
groceries at the market.
Santos shared that he sees parallels in his work and that of WWF-Philippines. He makes his pieces from discarded materials turning them into something that is meaningful. “I view this process as saving and salvaging these materials from their eventual death or uselessness. And this is where I see a certain parallel with the concerns of WWF in saving nature, saving wildlife, and saving the world as a more general concern,” he shared.
Justiniani posed, “If you think about the world, it will survive… so the environmental issue is actually a human issue. If we don’t take care of it, we will lose ourselves. We know we need to take care of the environment because that is our future, the future of human beings.”
At the end of it all, WWF-Philippines’ Art Ambassadors hope that their pieces provoke questions and discourse among viewers on environmental issues.
The WWF-Philippines Art Ambassadors’ exhibition opens to the public on April 24 and runs until May 6, at Ronac Lifestyle Center, Magallanes. To know more about WWF-Philippines and the “Art, Heart, Earth” project, you may visit https://www.facebook.com/WWF.Philippines/.
No comments:
Post a Comment