Present Encounters : Papers from the conference of the Second Asia-Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, Brisbane, 1996

Meanwhile, i n my senior year, I was grappling with the el usive meaning of art. I was learn ing art theory, discourse or i ntel lectual jakul as my friends and I would cal l it. Here we were bei ng trained to express ourselves in a language that continues to evolve in the foreign books and magazines which d ictate trends in the international art scene. We were like the unworthy flock waiti ng to be enl ightened by the latest 'ism' to be declared by the lords from above. Accommodated within a borrowed structure , art school became relevant only with in its confi nes. And since these concerns are mostly of individuals and communities i n highly developed cou ntries, the conditions that create their art are so much different from ours. The prevailing view about art was that it should transcend boundaries of nationality. One is no longer a Filipino; rather one becomes the citizen of the world . To be Filipino is to be confi ned. To be confi ned is to be understood . To be understood is to be literal. To be literal is to be propagandistic: a blasphemy, an insult to fine art. Luckily, a lot of questions were answered when I finally quit school . Life outside the university was tough . So much was to be learned in the streets of Manila. The rawness of life . Devoid of refinement. To hell with sophistication. Who cares about art? With seventy-percent of the people living below the poverty line, the main concern was still survival . I n the meantime, the Phil ippine art scene remains an enclave walled off from the rest of the populace. Art for the people, that's how it should be, I thought. So I went off to join protest groups in the late 1 980s. was a late-bloom ing activist, trying to fi nd a purpose for my craft. It was fu lfilling to work on large scale paintings with other artists. Murals for the street, backdrops for the multitude of peasants, laborers and students. Art was purposeful. To be able to sacrifice one's individuality for the sake of the many. At least the work was seen by hundreds of thousands on the streets and by many more on television news coverages. The message is delivered at a glance, very much like advertisi ng . To sel l an idea by rousing emotion and discontent. But pushed to the very extreme it later on became too romantic, messianic and judgmental . . . propaganda. (Which was, and still is, quite alright.) Not surprisingly, an opposite mi ndset developed into the 1 990s. The majority of citizens are wary of government lines and ti red as well of sloganeeri ng . There may be some who still take politics seriously, but very little have faith in it. The so-called street parliamentarians have gone back to their air-conditioned offices. But there is renewed belief in private enterprise. The Philippine media are no longer g ripped by government, and are now enjoying the lucrative rewards of press freedom. Shopping malls a re mushrooming, goods are overflowing , and advertising is having a heyday. Even the United States Bases have been transformed into 'economic zones'. We now have a situation where citizens are more secure with the media than with government. People with g rievances are afraid to go to the police , knowing that the biggest crime syndicates are covertly headed by men in uniform . They would rather go to the media. If it reaches the front page , then certainly the government would act swiftly. Journal ists whose faces appear in liquor ads are also the saviours called upon to mediate in hostage crises. On so-called public service programs, commentators lambast public officials, let alone military officers who were once the most feared personages in the country. Over government and religious institutions, mass media has become the all-powerful entity, because it has endeared itself to the people - thanks to pop culture. Where before , government and religion i nstilled fear for the body and the soul, independent media became the ord inary man 's ally. Every issue - whether it's about the latest scam in congress, or the feud between the President and Cardinal Sin , or the latest family massacred by d rug addicts - is fodder for sensationalism and entertainment. The recent craze i n The Philippines is Marimar, a soap opera imported from Mexico. Everything stops at 6:30 i n the evening, and suddenly there are fewer people in the streets. Fami lies glue themselves to the television set. Marimar is the heroine enmeshed in a universal drama about the poor bei ng downtrodden by the rich and powerful . But she's no martyr. She turned herself i nto her own fair lady, who became rich and exacted vengeance 1 22