ABOUT THE WORK

The works of Emmanuel Garibay revolve around themes of the ordinary people – their ways of living, their struggles, and their innate resilience. Garibay genuinely portrays the common people, brushing off their whitewashed depiction found in the works of most Filipino artists. He stated that a significant facet of his artistry is the individual's relationship to the community – a collective awareness that Garibay deemed as "lacking in the consciousness of the Filipinos." From the late 1990s to the mid-2000s, Garibay continued to exalt the ordinary Filipino in his art. His works began to show new subject matters, such as musicians, mother and child, and the Filipino family. Garibay's use of colors became noticeably lighter as he included subjects painted with brighter hues. Regarding the shift in focus on his subject, Garibay explained: "I wait for the right time for me to paint these subjects. I don't stay long in the same style. I work every day, and the truth is, you don't feel the same way every day." Garibay also expounded on the relationship between his artistry and his subjects: “When I paint, it's all about my ideas, so even if I paint some sentimental themes, it has to be according to how I would like it to be. It should be the kind of relationship that exists between two persons."