Friday, December 28, 2012

Comet Dec 28 2012


This morning, I woke up with an email from a dear friend.

COMET

I love the distant memory
because it hands like the branch
on the lemon tree in our yard, 
the dog jumps onto the bed
with a green ball between his jaws
and shakes it, he growls, his eyes are fierce,
I grab it after a minor struggle
and throw it, down it goes and bounces
over rough terrain, past tumbleweed
and lava markings, past the stream
and down a dry arroyo, the canine mind
calculates and amalgamates, the dog engines
begin to rev up, all gears are ready. . .

Comet turns quickly and leaps
onto the floor, he rushes past the door
and enters the earth spread out before him,
he is after that green ball
and nothing will deter him

I love Comet
a border collie, Australian shepherd mix,
he lives in my head and
zig zagged through my forties and early fifties,
we ruled the hillside and slid together
down tough grades of gravel,
he lived a tame wild life in this city
of cats and bicycles, he loved
two masters, he served one antique code

to live and to enter
into the kingdom, his eyes fell to rest
as I held on to the metal gurney
one late morning, his back had gone out
but the spirit spun

-Neeli Cherkovski 
Dec 28 2012

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Malakaῆang Thursdays at Blot Art Studio



A weekly event that gathers artists, musicians, and art enthusiasts happens at Blot Art Studio Makati.
Running on its Fourth Week, Malakaῆang Thursdays will now feature the sound artist Sleepersecond and a Didgeridoo performer Fitzroy.
In the previous weeks it had several artists to perform and share their talents to fellow artists.




Makati-based Japanese artist Atsuko Yamagata impressed the audience by performing her art which is live-painting accompanied by music. Yamagata expresses the music she hears and paints them on canvas. Every stroke and movement influenced heavily by the music and poetry in her background.
Bobby Balingit’s fascinating guitar performance accompanied Atsuko Yamagata’s work in order to create a painting that is created through her auditory environment.
Kooky Tuason, Marty Tengco, and Raul Roco Jr read poetry amidst music and live-painting.

The environment in Malakaῆang Thursday gives a cozy and warm invitation, with comfortable and uniquely made furniture by the artists themselves. It is a place where you can be surrounded by fascinating artworks and even witness how they’re made in action.

This event aims to create a community of artists that share and showcase their talents, to meet new artists and perhaps come up with collaborations in the future. It provides an alternative venue that deviates from other regular venues and offers a place where people can just chill, hang-out and meet artists in an intimate fashion. Whether you want to hear poetry while holding a beer in your hand or hear electronic-sound-art, then Malakaῆang Thursdays is something to look forward to each week.
See you Thursday at Malakaῆang!



Malakaῆang Thursday happens each week at 7PM - 12AM
Blot Art Studio
9726 Pililia St. corner Kalayaan Ave. Brgy Valenzuela, Makati City
http://blotartstudio.com

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Under the Maddening Moon of March Laurel Ocol Exhibit


Veronica Laurel and AK Ocol will hold their very first Two Woman Show happening at Big Bad Wolf, located in G/F Fairways Tower 5th Ave corner Mckinley in Bonifacio Global City Taguig.

The exhibit will open on the 25th of October at 8PM and will end on November 2.

This show features the intricate and delicate works of Veronica Laurel that is made up of binded paper and sculpted wood applied in bookarts and furniture while AK Ocol's obsessively detailed drawings balances out the former artist's work with images that dares the viewers to look into another dimension.

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Nondualism at Blot Art Studio Makati



Ten artists are going to exhibit at Blot Art Studio this coming 31st, just a day before Halloween. Aside from showing contemporary arts today, there will also be live musical performances. 

Nondualism:"We live in a world of dual illusions, a right and wrong, black and white. Nondualism is a concept that shatters the fragile shell of duality, taking the two different perceived things and looking at them as one and the same. This group exhibit challenges artists from different fields and medium to explore the neither nor idea that can free a person’s perception of things and the world we live in. "

Artists:
BENEDICT ABIGAN, BOBBY BALINGIT, BK CALUCIN, ELEANOR GIRON, VERONICA LAUREL, JOEE MEJIAS, WAYAN NARRA, MAKI NAVARRETE, AB PAREDES, ROMMEL PIDAZO

Blot Art Studio is one of the latest contemporary gallery and art studio in Makati today that offers art education, residency, exhibits, and other events. It welcomes community of artists locally and internationally that opts to share their talents and creativity in order to create outstanding works.

You can find the FB Page right here.

The Event page is here.

Map:
Kalayaan Ave will be blocked for that day and JP Rizal ave will be a two way road. Parking spaces are available as long as the vehicle is parked on the right parking side.

See you there!

Sunday, October 14, 2012

Cat Condo

I forgot to post this really old cat condo I have made several months ago for a friend who has two lovely cats.
Cat condos are nice and it really helps the kitties have their own cave or space they can retreat to. It also functions as a scratching post so you can definitely have your beautiful furniture spared from cat claws.

More Cat Condos are available at Blot Art Studio 9726 Pililia St Corner Kalayaan Santiago Village Brgy Valenzuela Makati.
Opens Monday to Saturdays from 11am to 7pm.

Friday, September 28, 2012

For the tortured...

This day beat the juices out of me and upon arriving at the studio today in Makati, the annoying newly bought mac computer's internet is acting up again. It's so weird that spotify works but the internet browsers couldn't even squeeze out any information from the world wide web.
I hate MACs.

It's started working again when our transient artist tinkered with it.
And to push the bumming moment to its deepest despairing level, I channeled Maria Mena through Spotify.



Listening to her tortured soul that encourages masochism and unrequited love can be quite relaxing though I don't suggest this if you are feeling emotional lest the emotion linger longer than you wanted.

I'm just glad her latest album is starting to sound less dedicated to wall-flowers and beginning to tap her thug soul.


Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Different Strokes at The Ayala Museum Artist Space



This is something that I didn't expect at all. At such a very short notice, I am included in a group exhibit to be hold at the Ayala Museum, Artist Space 2nd Floor.
Mga Iba't Ibang Birada or Different Strokes, happening on the 14th of September and opening reception starts at 6PM.
There are 14 more artists included in the exhibit coming from different places, backgrounds, and of course, style or stoke. My works are the sole 3D objects because all of the artists are painters. It's like the Pulp Fiction Exhibit again, where almost everyone were illustrators.

For this exhibit, I have immediately come up with three 3d objects that I have been planning to create for a long time. I haven't had a proper sleep in four days because I was trying to finish up on the art works. Not to mention I am coming up with this wretched feeling of impending sickness, that feeling as if you've been hit by a bus and shortness of breath that would eventually progress into cold and cough.
Last time I had this kind of sickness, my friend took me to Makati Med and she witnessed how my nose got vacuumed, not a very pretty sight.

One book to be a part of a work


The least I can do tonight is sleep early and work hard for the remaining days.

Quarter Collective

Hopefully I'll be feeling well by Friday. See you at the opening of the exhibit!

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

A Postcard to NC



A year ago, I sold the poetry books I have bound myself and though I didn’t bother to sell as much as I can, a few handfuls were enough.
A woman bought one of my books and I thought to myself, that people still buy poetry, perhaps, there’s still hope. The woman showed my book to Neeli Cherkovski, who happened to be visiting the Philippines. Neeli Cherkovski is the author of at least a dozen books, a professor in a state university, and also the best friend of Charles Bukowski.

After a few weeks, the woman contacted me. Saying Neeli Cherkovski wants to meet me. I didn’t know who he was, but the woman said Neeli was impressed with my poetries. I was at work, about 2 hours away where they want to meet. Immediately at lunch break, I hopped on the MRT from Quezon ave to Ayala and met Neeli Cherkovski in Serendra. I wasn’t the least nervous if the office would penalize me, although the office did get tighter after that and I was on probation.

I met him, a man of white hair, glasses, and quirky mannerisms. I enjoyed having coffee with him and talking to him about poetry and writing. After that, he invited me to dinner a week from that day in his partner’s place in Serendra.

We exchanged books, he gave me two books while I bound a special book for him with new compilations of my poetry. He left the country a few days afterwards.

I promised to write to him and here is the first one.

It doesn't matter whether I sold a few books, it was enough that I was able to meet one of the most prolific poets in underground America through my poetry. Since then, I've only compiled books without having the same content. Each one having different poetry and stories. I don't sell much and it's perfectly fine.

"Dear Neeli,
The scorching sun is fiercer and the rain grows harsher, see you again when you return. Currently working in an Art Space run by artists who are too indolent to read books.
I write, always.
It is the unshaking ground I stand on in a place where people coming from different lands tries hard to be insane."
Veronica
PS: Happy Labor Day!

Friday, August 24, 2012

It Has Begun Again...

"What's that smell? Is that puke??"


Having just moved in to the new place in order to establish once again an Art Studio, right after having to leave the previous one.
Paintings are lined up on the side, waiting to be hanged on walls.
In a city, where it's pretty impossible to live off your art, it is quite monumental to risk almost everything even the clothes on your back. And that's exactly what we're doing. Tony, someone I'm currently working with, sits contemplating an idea. Hopefully, a bright idea that would help us earn from what we're doing. Otherwise, I should expect a terrible struggle and occasional famine in my career.

We hold sketching sessions with live models and also classes, aside from exhibits, should you wish to visit - you can easily find us at 9726 Pililia St. (along Kalayaan Ave) Santiago Village, Brgy Valenzuela, Makati City. Preferably from 10am to 6pm Monday to Saturday.


Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Divine Intervention Ruined My Relationship

Special thanks to our sponsor VnC Cocktails for making our event possible with merry drinks!



And your lover got struck by lightning.
Selections from young and old poets of today.
Bring Your Own Poison.

-----

"One of the universe’s greatest injustices is that poets, whose minds dwell far beyond the middling realities of the mundane world, have to worry about making a living. Poetry—even more than other arts—is a notoriously unprofitable endeavor, and in recent history great poets have spent their weekdays working as dreamy doctors, unlikely insurance salesmen, disaffected journalists—the list goes on."
-Jake Marmer
http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-arts-and-culture/books/95624/the-candy-store-poet?all=1

See you there!

Monday, April 16, 2012

Busy is an understatement

There are several reasons why I haven’t been able to update my blog but I’m not one to disclose them though I have been working on projects and I was in dire need of a vacation. Over the weekend, 10a Alabama Resurrection gallery held their quarterly art fair. My new creation will be displayed there for a couple of months or until someone buys it.

This is the new shelf I released.
Books and Beaches are my thing... really.
A friend told me it's perfect on the porch of a beach home. 
The white shelves can be knocked down and you can still use the water ski if you wish, you just have to attach the shelves again with the screws provided through the concealed hole when you want it to become a bookshelf again.

Design by Veronica Laurel. Available at 10a Alabama Resurrection and Found Objects Gallery, near E. Rod Sr.

Friday, March 2, 2012

A Slice of my Secret Life (Furling Chaos Update!)


Despite buying a digital camera that has Panoramic capabilities, I still failed to take pictures of the group exhibit I joined a month ago.
I forgive myself for being utterly lazy at such moments but good news is that the exhibit was featured in a lifestyle magazine online and had a review about my piece “Furling Chaos in the Eye of the Storm”



“Veronica Laurel’s Furling Chaos in the Eye of the Storm is one piece of art that transcends genre but remains faithful to the main element of paper. The piece is enclosed in a wood and glass case, inside of which snippets of poetry on strips of paper are seen. A traditionally bound book hangs from twine and is suspended within the case. The piece is a wonderful marriage between literature and the visual arts, featuring the artist’s upcoming novel, and even showcasing her skill with furniture design, as the case of her own hands as well.”

You can read the article here

Paalam! Paalam!

An update about the piece is that it was bought by a Singaporean collector who owns a gallery in Singapore and Malaysia, and my piece will be shipped overseas by the month of April (Which means, you can still get to see it at the gallery in Art informal til then). Unfortunately, I won’t be coming along. It seems that traveling is not in the horizon for me. I am left to toil harder in my own beloved land.

I would like to believe that I’m happy that my piece was able to move someone through emotions, through soul and he was convinced that my piece is the essence of his life with which it was the manifestation of mine. Somehow without meeting this person, I have created something that somehow connected us, as if aligned constellations.

That night at the exhibit opening of Pulp Fiction, I can’t say that I was completely sober since I was given a bottle of beer and requested white wine because I could not stand the taste of beer. A little bit tipsy and I wasn’t even able to take a picture of myself at the event.

But amidst the unfettered socialization that night and trying to walk straight without feeling as if the floor is a bed of water, I found a picture that somehow resembled someone who looks like me. 


See you guys at the next exhibit. :)

Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Veronica Laurel Books for AIP 2012


It’s been more than a week after the Art in the Park event and I’m only posting now about what a success it was. AIP is probably one of the most exciting days for artists, collectors and people interested in culture and the arts as they meet to see each other’s works, purchase some and display their works to the public while others like art collectors comb the whole place for some rare art finds.

This is a place where you can witness someone buying a P30,000 piece of artwork on the spot without blinking an eye. Artworks range from P100 to P30,000 in this event and the variety of artworks on display exceed the colors of the rainbow.
One great thing about this is that it’s also a fund raising event for the Museum Foundation in order to make their future events and projects possible. Thank you for everyone who attended and those who commissioned book works.

A busy corner where art pieces are being mounted while collectors look at catalogs of artists' works


Here are my works on display at the event, I used ground wood for paper with a natural off-white color. The paper absorbs ink well and is highly recommended for sketches as well (charcoal, pencil, etc)

4x9x7 and probably weighs about a kilo. Tanguili edging, marine wood and ornamental leather latch
8.5x6x9 Almost 20 year old Mango tree branch
Perfect binding method, Almost 20 year old Mango tree branch. 
Was not featured in the collection under Art Informal since I gave it as a gift to a friend.
This is the smallest I've created so far. Just a bit the same size as my mobile phone. I like how the wood borers left a scar on the bark that resembles a maze.
The AIP Postcard, I sent a few to friends who lives outside the country.
If you want to purchase a book from me do drop me a line. By purchasing items, you will be helping me fuel my creative activities and also fund my future exhibits. The smallest book in the picture has a price tag of P500 inclusive of shipping nationwide. 
You can also visit my website at www.veronicalaurel.com

Friday, February 24, 2012

The Future of Animal Farming is an Epic Fail


It is a fact that a huge portion of people in this world eat meat. Since eating meat has been incorporated in our culture, history and some would even refer to ancient texts where snakes talk and it is fine to sell your daughter for slavery.


Are Brainless Chickens the Solution to Animal Cruelty?

Click link to read the article. (Photo: André Ford)

 
In this article, the “artist” wants to address the inhumane ways how factory and industrial farming treat animals. Every single day there are millions of animals that are slaughtered in order to satiate our taste buds.
Unfortunately the artist has failed tragically since despite the chicken not feeling a thing if it dies, cruelty in its sense is more on someone’s spiritual level. The lack of it would make you think of intricate inventions on how to give in to your desires without having to deal with their guilt. Just a sophisticated way to alleviate the burden of a conscience which have achieved nothing but the same thing as the old ways of farming.

Even if the chicken cannot feel or know that it’s going to die, it cannot gloss over the fact that it’s still cruel. Taking a life no matter how you do it, whether the doomed recipient feels, know, sees it or not, and whether you do it with an injection or a pillow, is immoral. Taking away the rights of an animal, in this case the chicken, to live a life naturally is in its sense, is still ultimately cruel, let alone removing its brain and keeping it in an induced coma.

Removing a chicken’s brain and putting it into a state of coma until slaughter day is nothing more than an intricate and discreet manner of cruelty and violence, and will never justify their deaths.

Not to mention that it’s still quite cheaper, easier, convenient and sustainable to just plant vegetables.
People need to demand more vegetables in order for the supplies to make a sudden turn. Vegetables are by far still healthier and better for the human diet.

Then again, if people really cared and has compassion for animals, they would stop stuffing their mouths with meat.
I won’t be surprised if this “installation” would be the future of farming because people today are nothing more than whores of novelty, the commoners today are so enamored with something new that they would embrace it even in such a promiscuous way and despite the fact that it can bring more harm than good.

Watch this film if you really want to know about the things you stuff in your mouth

We must make the choice to eat well. Do not be herded by what commercial food manufacturers are telling you to eat. If we start making the right choices and demands, the rest will follow. :)

Friday, February 17, 2012

Veronica Laurel at Art in the Park Under Art Informal


Veronica Laurel's works will be on display at the Art in the Park fair on Saturday February 18, 2012. You can find her works with the Art Informal booth L4. The fair starts at 2PM and ends at Midnight.

Here's hoping that it's going to be a bright day with the bluest of skies on Saturday. I can't show the rest of my works since some of them still need some finishing touches. The collection that I'm going to show on Saturday is closely created with paper and wood, two important elements in my work and life.

Art Informal Gallery Booth L4 (near the playground)
Art in the Park is a perennial project by the Museum Foundation that happens every February of the year. It is an art fair where art works by famous and prolific artists would have price tags not exceeding the amount of P30,000. This year, works from Ben Cab and other artists will be displayed at very affordable prices. Collectors, artists and pretty much anyone interested in the arts, gather on a one day event to purchase works that may never grace the local market.

See you guys there!

Monday, February 6, 2012

Writing and Blogging Infused with Culture




Blogging on the said event will be - yours truly. Though live-blogging is not exactly something I do usually, this is an event I’m making an exception. The event will discuss SEO writing and useful 101s on blogging.
I also haven’t been to the Yuchengco Museum and this is my chance to visit the place while attending a substantive talk on writing and blogging. It’s not every day that the Freelance Writers Guild of the Philippines will be having events as such, taking advantage of opportunities like this is a must on my list.

The Yuchengco Museum is one of the stone structures that proves the harmony between Filipino-Chinese communities. I wish to one day exhibit my works here but for now, I'm happy just having to visit the place while killing numbers of birds at the same time.The Arts & Culture is something that not all of us have a clear picture with, since most writers tend to stick with the arts of letters. Having this place as a venue really opens up windows into other areas of arts.

There’s a huge number of Filipinos who blog but only a few of them actually get to earn through blogging. The event will also be demystifying SEO writing, which is something not all writers understand. If you wish to take part on SEO writing and start earning through it then I highly suggest that you join in.

Know more about the event on Panitikan.com.ph
 
Reservations are available and I believe that early birds will have discounts. If you have questions then don’t be afraid to ask and call the numbers on the link.

----

The Freelance Writers’ Guild of the Philippines (FWGP) teams up with the Yuchengco Museum for a series of writers’ workshops and substantive talks of experts on culture, art, design and heritage. “Media practitioners, journalists and writers are the links by which cultural information and education is disseminated to the general public. In the information age, it is imperative that cultural institutions share substantive knowledge about culture, art, design and heritage. This 2012, Yuchengco Museum focuses on Culture and Media, bringing together ideas, sectors, groups and institutions in collaborative ventures that will highlight Culture as an intrinsic and central pillar for development directions,” museum curator Jeannie Javelosa announced. Under the program Culture and Media, Yuchengco Museum partners with writers groups, the first of which is the FWGP.

The first-in-a-series of workshops kicks off at noon on Saturday, Feb. 11 for a workshop by blogging pioneers Ganns Deen on Blogging 101, Janette Toral on Search Engine Optimization or SEO. Dannie Alvarez of the Yuchengco Museum will give a theoretical framework on culture, to be followed by Philippine Daily Inquirer columnist Arch. Isabel “Cookie” Berenguer Asuncion with her talk on “Let the Eyes Speak, Articulating the Language of Design,” with her talk opened to the general public at 3:30pm.

The FWGP is a new group of freelance writers based in the Philippines. Its members include journalists, newspaper and magazine contributors, copywriters, researchers and documenters, blog writers, screenwriters, literary writers and SEO experts. It is committed to protecting the welfare of freelance writers, and to elevating the quality of their work output.

Yuchengco Museum fosters a greater public appreciation of the finest in Filipino and Filipino-Chinese visual arts and creativity. It does not only showcase art, but also serves as a forum of exchange, debate, and education.

The FWGP’s founder Ime Morales says that the series aims to seek new writers from among the participants of the seminars and mentor/ help them develop writing skills; educate aspiring writers about the different forms of writing for new media/blogs, TV & film, children, among others. The group also wishes to help current writers upgrade their skills, especially in new media. Finally, they wish to enhance the capability of writers – senior, junior and aspiring – by educating them on possible streams or sources of income outside of the practice of their profession.

The Culture and Media Program 2012 will focus on writing for the needs and supporting specifics of the Creative Industries. Lines up by the FWGP are Writing for TV, Film and Theater back-to-back with What Clicks with the Filipino Masa: Motifs in Filipino Blockbuster Films / the Indie Culture in April; Opinion Writing vis-à-vis Filipino Cultural Values: The Spirituality in Filipino Dance and Music for July; and Writing for Children with Philippine Culture and History as Source of Inspiration for Creative Concepts in October.

Workshop fees are pegged at P1,800. inclusive of attendance in one session, a day pass to the Yuchengco Museum, cocktails and a certificate of attendance or participation.

Cash or credit card payments are accepted and may be coursed through the Yuchengco Museum. Check the website for more information and schedules of talks for the year www.yuchengcomsueum.org. For inquiries, email abrina_programs@yuchengcomuseum.org or call 889.1234. The museum is located at the ground floor of RCBC Plaza, corner Ayala and Sen. Gil Puyat Avenues, Makati City.

Saturday, February 4, 2012

Designing and Creating a Bookshelf from a Tree Branch


Veronica Laurel will be with Art Informal Gallery at the Art in the Park event

I was invited by Art Informal Gallery to be with them at the Art in the Park event coming this February 18 at Jaime Velasquez Park, Salcedo Village Makati. It is a one day event starting from 2 at noon and ends at Midnight.
Art below 30,000 pesos are on sale from various artists from the veterans to the younger starting artists.
It is a day to celebrate and collect art in the most festive fashion in the month of February.

In order to hold my bound books, a bookcase was needed and I don’t want just any bookcase. My father had cut down a branch from our mango tree that extends more than 8 feet and I thought of using the branch since I know my father would only turn it to coal. To elevate its purpose, I have decided to turn it into a bookcase in order to showcase my book works.

The sketch of the book case

Part of the branch I have cut using a compass saw. These are the materials for the books I'm going to make.
This is the branch, though they've been cut into 4 separate pieces already.
I shall be working on this project until the 16th of February, aside from creating a book case, I will also be binding books with the same materials and element. This collection is something that I've thought of for a long time. Will not be posting results yet but attending the Art in the Park event would definitely enthrall you with the art pieces available on sale. 

My arm ached cutting just a portion, I tried the axe.