Reflect on Prejudice at Elmer Dumlao’s KAMUKHAMO at the ArtistSpace, Ayala Museum
Prejudice is dangerous and unforgiving, and this is what Elmer Dumlao wants us to reflect in his next series: to be more sensible, fair, cautious, and discerning yet critically caring.
IMAGE from ArtistSpace
Face the Truth, Truth Is in Your Face is the 12th solo exhibition of Jordan-based Filipino visual artist Elmer Dumlao.
“Kamukhamo” instead of “Kamukha mo” is a metaphor for passive judgment specific to how quickly we dismiss and arrive at conclusions. The title itself is the statement, “You are like one!” rather than a question to give credit and reprieve.
Prejudice is dangerous and unforgiving, and this is what Elmer Dumlao wants us to reflect in his Kamukhamo series: to be more sensible, fair, cautious, and discerning yet critically caring. His work entitled, Kamukhamo: Nagmumurang Kamias is an allegory for a person of elder age yet behaves and dresses like a youngster. This work greatly implies our conservative nature towards social norms else one will be shunned and disgraced. “Nagmumura” means budding plant or sapling while “kamias” is synonymous with “may asim pa.” An individual with this connotation is most of the time negatively received in the community yet we fail to appreciate that maybe the person is just a fashionista and a free-spirited individual or maybe an introverted person on his or her way of being accepted or getting noticed.
IMAGE from ArtistSpace
Dumlao’s central piece Kamukhamo: Salamin is an interactive work of multiple mirrors installed on canvas where spectators can view themselves to their gusto while reading all positive attributes scribbled those one or two more aspects they might and wish to possess such as “batang-bata,” “malusog,” “swerte,” “yayamanin,” and “masayahin.” Inadvertently we love to be loved, and this piece is what is all about. It is a moral anecdote on why we tend to criticize, even though we do not want to be put in the same situation.
IMAGE from ArtistSpace
Dumlao’s Kamukhamo: Doble Kara not just focuses on the word signifiers but the materials he extracted to add further depth and meaning to his work. The “sakla”card game which composed of portrait signifies how we are viewed differently by people we met. In all of our interactions, we put on a facade and simply bet on it wishing for luck and good outcome, and most importantly to shield ourselves from unnecessary harm, inadvertently no matter how we put our best foot forward we cannot control how we are perceived, thus, come see us as “mandaraya,” while some see us “tapat,” some “barumbado,” and some “magalang,” and some see us “duwag” or “mabangis,” and the list goes on. It is said that people fear what they cannot understand, and truly enough this contagion infects us all for we rather are perceived as fearful than brave since decisions are not simply black and white or a choice of good versus evil all the time.
IMAGE from ArtistSpace
We dress with courtesies and civil manners that sometimes we become too conscious resulting in not being real to ourselves anymore along in the process of becoming self-righteous.
Dumlao as an artist does not judge, on the other hand, he considers himself a spectator and an observer of human interactions. He believed it is neither right nor wrong. It is situational, and is simply a condition to be separated, to be different, and to feel great.
IMAGE from ArtistSpace
KAMUKHAMO: Face the Truth, Truth Is in Your Face will be on view from May 15-28, 2022 with an Artist’s Reception on May 21 2022 at 4:00 p.m. at the ArtistSpace located at Ground Level, Ayala Museum Annex, Makati Avenue corner De La Rosa Street, Greenbelt Park, Makati City. The gallery is open daily from 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Admission is FREE.
Kamukhamo is presented by University of Santo Tomas Atelier Alumni Association Inc. (UST-AAAI) under the tutelage of Ms. Marissa Pe Yang, and in cooperation with The Artologist Gallery.
This is a press release. Edits were made prior to publishing.
