Art Verité Gallery

Thank You For Sharing

Intimate Boundaries invites us to explore the inner worlds of four extraordinary artists Shireen Co, Shalimar Gonzaga, Genavee Lazaro, and Regina Reyes. As a collection of paintings that delve into the artists’ personal spaces, the exhibition is a study in solace, security, and making room for one’s particular needs.

A terrarium, traditionally a sealable glass container housing plants, becomes an evocative metaphor in this exhibition. It represents the artists’ unique mapping of private territories, encapsulating their emotions, experiences, and the sanctuaries within which they thrive. While terraria can be sealed, creating an isolated environment for plant growth, the artists bravely welcome viewers to witness and engage with their innermost thoughts and narratives.

Shireen Co’s canvases are filled with her personal journals. Through her writing, she creates a space where she can be wholly open and honest, allowing her thoughts and emotions to flow freely. These journals serve as a mirrors reflecting her experiences and feelings through time. Within the pages of her journals, Co finds both contentment and a tether to her own thoughts. Writing becomes a means of translation, now transformed into paintings that allow her to articulate her experiences and emotions in tangible forms. In Expressions and Impressions, she shows how they shape her understanding and perception of the world, as well as her own mindful journey of self-reflection and evolution.

Shalimar Gonzaga’s paintings evoke a sense of tranquility, introspection, and a sense of deeply cherished spaces and visual imagery generously shared. They encapsulate a sense of intimacy not only for the artist herself but also for those who she finds intimate connections with. Hopes, joyous memories and positive emotions flourish in the pieces, despite the constraints of distance. Gonzaga’s exploration of the forest serves as a powerful manifestation of her yearning for peace, stability, and independence. Through her art, she expresses an unwavering desire to experience the world and embraces the wonders it has to offer. Her delicate use of light and shadow, combined with subtle hues and faithful renderings of trees, creates a serene ambiance that invites the viewer in.

Genavee Lazaro shares a painting of her home La Union featuring her Putik Friends pottery studio, an integral part of her creative journey, in Dito na po. It is where she holds workshops for the public, exhibitions, and a mini-shop for tourists. More importantly, she shows where her beloved characters, her Cactus Friends, are now born. She reveals how an artistic enterprise can be combined with the comforts of a private home thoughtfully opened to an adopted community, offering a sanctuary not only for her own practice, but for other budding makers and enthusiasts. The clean strokes of Lazaro’s brushes capture the essence of giving, growth, and resilience, reflecting the love and passion poured into the creation of her works and studio, and a profound connection to where she finds herself in as she undertakes her artistic voyage.

Regina Reyes’ collage works manifest a world of bold and dynamic energy that seamlessly blend fantasy and reality, creating a unique visual tapestry. As she contemplated her contribution to the exhibition, she initially toyed with the idea of a literal terrarium. However, she sought to capture the essence of the space that currently breathes life into her existence, resulting in pieces that embody imperfection, messiness, and occasional stress, while simultaneously offering comfort in a place of one’s own. Kitten-heeled shoes, stuffed toys, leaves, and shadows from prefabricated concrete dividers and steel-barred windows offer her reflections not only on the space she finds herself in, but notions of the people she dwells with.

Though Intimate Boundaries provide a window into the artists’ personal spaces, inviting viewers to explore and connect with the emotions and experiences that have shaped their lives recently, they still provide the necessary detachment that keep them protected. Each artwork tells a distinct story, unveiling the complex layers of each artist’s journey and their profound relationships with their creative processes, yet we can never encroach– we may only offer respect and gratitude, and give back the trust these artists selflessly allowed in these guarded glimpses.

Written by Kaye O’Yek