LOUD AND CLEAR: LOOK AT WHAT THESE NOT-SO-SUBTLE PARODY ILLUSTRATIONS ARE TELLING US
An artist from the Philippines turns Filipino staples into witty and intriguing illustrations that speak about the country’s reality today.
We have always been told that art is a form of expression. It means that whatever we felt is what we translated into pictures. That said, art can also be quite the powerful form of addressing issues we face whether it is personal, or even political. These narratives show any feeling or tell any story to whoever’s looking at it.
Local artist Alexandra Brotonel and Alyansang Tapat sa Lasallista or TAPAT, a student political party, transformed our favorite Filipino snacks and even familiar goods found in the widely-talked about “ayuda” into powerful statements that are aimed to address the issues the Philippines is facing — and it’s not just the COVID-19 Pandemic.
In a post, Brotonel, noted, “Artists are not terrorists! Hindi ako terorista! Hindi kami terorista! Sa totoo lang, mahirap gumuhit kung walang mensahe. Mahirap maging boses ng marami lalo na kapag mag isa ka lang. Pero naniniwala ako, na maraming uhaw sa hustisya!”
The creative partnership was forged between the visual artist and the 34-year-old political party in DLSU. In releasing the first of the series, TAPAT highlighted, “Art is the loudest silence. Today, TAPAT features artworks based on current events, manifested by food and snacks you often find at home.”
With the initial release gaining online traction, the series was quickly followed up with the political party noting, “With the first post garnering over 900 shares and reaching over 80,000 people, we continue this journey of expressing activism through art. Today, TAPAT features artworks based on current events, manifested by what you would typically find in relief packages sent by the government, or more commonly known as “????????????????????.”
The country’s citizens are facing a slew of pressing issues and injustices made even more apparent and unacceptable especially with all of us pushed in isolation, such as the approval of the Anti-Terrorism Bill, ineffective solutions causing the number of COVID-19 patients to spike, Lumad killings, “sudden” death of known activists, and honestly… the list goes on.
Here at The Feed, we have talked about how art and politics go hand in hand In the course of the quarantine, we have seen many visual and even performance artists use social media to full use to express dissent and strong opinions on these many jarring issues that have surfaced because of, but are not limited to the pandemic.
As TAPAT aptly puts it, now, more than ever, “Express your advocacies through art.”
With additional text by Leo Balante
