Provenance: Private collection, Makati City

ABOUT THE WORK

For the abstract painter Lao Lianben, contemplation remains as one of the main guiding themes in his creative process—where the act of contemplating is often the teleological endpoint of most of his artworks. In this work entitled Sense of Light, Lao draws the viewer in, not only through its use of space, technique, and color but also cultivates a relationship with light itself. Here, Lianben has created an ode to the rudimentary and essential aspect of light. He harkens back to the primordial and universal act of seeing as an access point towards the very core of artistic expression. Through Sense of Light, one may leave with a multitude of interpretations, but all draw from the basic yet conceptual act of seeing. One of the foremost Filipino artists working with abstraction today, Lao Lianben’s distinctive style manages to capture the imagination by using only the most essential elements. His figures and subjects invite contemplation as one is absorbed by both the familiarity of the work and its completely foreign features. This juxtaposition of elements encourages the viewer to question their relationship with everyday objects.