Ofelia Gelveson-Tequi's Still @ Hiraya Gallery

"Still"
by Ofelia Gelveson-Tequi
Hiraya Gallery
December 9, 2006 to December 30, 2006

Continuing a series of works begun after her move from Paris to Limeuil in the countryside, Ofelia Gelvezon-Tequi presents her latest still life paintings at the Hiraya Gallery on a limited engagement from December 9 to 30.

Born in Iloilo, Ofelia studied at the Pratt Institute in New York on a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation in the late ‘60s. She gained public renown as a printmaker, winning the top prize at the second annual exhibition of the Printmakers Association of the Philippines. She also won the gold medal for printmaking on the 35th annual competition of the Art Association of the Philippines (AAP). Since 1970, she has had more than 30 one-man exhibitions in Manila, Paris, New York, Monaco, and group shows in other art capitals.

The eight still lifes in the exhibition depict ceramic containers and urns with gourds on a plain wooden table. The artist follows a northern European tradition that began in Flanders and the Netherlands. The French painter Jean Chardin (1699-1769), who painted everyday items—kettles, vegetables, earthenware vessels—is universally admired for excellence in this genre. Ofelia’s works, with their superb colouring, light and texture are worthy additions.
The sombre shades of greys and muted blues that form the background of the paintings are poignant counterpoints to the vibrant yellows, reds and greens of the gourds, and the rich tones of the earthenware vessels. The plain wooden boards of the simple kitchen table underline the day-to-day ordinariness of the scenes before us—scenes that we probably pay little attention to in our daily encounters. Ofelia shares a story regarding the table: “it is a table I found in the house that has been sent by the house’s former owners from the Ivry train station to the next village. The label is still pasted on one of the sides. These are traces of unknown past lives.”

The artist has juxtaposed well-worn ceramic containers used for centuries to preserve walnut oil and food in the Perigord region, with the colourful but inedible gourds that come out at the end of summer and early autumn—yet another reminder of the passage of time—the ephemeral with the lasting, the natural with the man-made.
There is a tradition in still life painting that seeks to draw attention to the drab details of everyday life, and underscore the fleeting nature of human life. Called vanitas, derived from Ecclesiastes 1:2 (vanitas vanitatum omnia vanitas), these paintings “remind us of the transience of life, the futility of pleasure and the certainty of death.” While Ofelia’s works do not fall strictly under vanitas conventions (which would normally have decaying fruits and skulls to stress the obvious), there is a sense of introspection in the paintings—stressing the artist’s strong philosophical bent and mature world view.

Ofelia Gelveson-Tequi's "Still" @ Hiraya Gallery
December 9, 2006 to December 30, 2006

Hiraya Gallery is located at 530 United Nations Avenue, Ermita, Manila, Philippines.
Tel/Fax Number (632) 523.3331
hiraya@info.com.ph

Hiraya Gallery is open Mondays thru Saturdays, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.