Provenance: Gallery Indigo, Benguet

Exhibited: BenCab Museum's Gallery Indigo, FourPlay II, Tuba, Benguet, August 8 - October 4, 2015

ABOUT THE WORK

In 2015, Benedicto "Bencab" Cabrera, Justin "Tiny" Nuyda, Edwin Wilwayco, and Virgilio "Pandy" Aviado joined forces in a one-of-a-kind group exhibition wittily named FourPlay II at the Gallery Indigo at Bencab Museum in Tuba, Benguet. It was the sequel to their 2006 show FourPlay I held at the Galeria Astra in Makati City. In a 2006 Manila Times article titled 'A long time coming,' published in conjunction with the FourPlay I show, Aviado jokingly shared that the exhibition title came from their "common denominator" of libog (libido) and timeless laughs for adult jokes. The centerpiece of the FourPlay II exhibition was this work aptly titled Interaction II. A rare collaboration among the four eminent maestros of our time, this is a unique piece for each artist painted in a specific area. Unlike other collaboration works in which individual styles splatter all over the composition, thus forming an incoherent, disconnected, and unintelligible whole, this particular painting palpably captures the respective creative ingenuities and artistic flairs of Bencab, Nuyda, Wilwayco, and Aviado. In Interaction II, the four artists transcend the boundaries of their creative differences and harmoniously integrate their individual virtuosities, styles, and themes. The work first engrosses the viewer toward the sublime eroticism of Bencab's nude woman. The exquisite sensuality of Wilwayco's lyrical abstract expressionism emphasizes his masterful weaving of the full potentials of color and space. The sultriness of Nuyda's bold brushstrokes and Aviado's fine grasp of the non-figurative are all sensuously imbibed within the composition. In a recent occasion, León Gallery had the privilege to talk to Edwin Wilwayco about the creative process that led to this work. Wilwayco recalls: “Ang ginawa naming style noon, yung ibang painting, mauuna si Tiny gumawa sa studio niya. Tapos si Bencab, si Pandy, tapos ako. Pagkatapos ko, ibibigay ko kay Tiny. Pag tapos na si Tiny, ibibigay niya sa akin. Until it took us almost six months, siyempre nagkakatamaran, follow-follow-up. (What we did then was Tiny would first create in his studio. Then Bencab, Pandy, and I. After I’ve done my part, I’ll give the painting to Tiny [and so on, and so forth]. Until it took us almost six months [to finish the work] due to occasional laziness and numerous follow-ups.) Bencab and Aviado first joined forces in a three-man show with Marciano Galang at the Art Association of the Philippines in 1965. It was also Bencab’s first art exhibition. Bencab, Aviado, and Nuyda's friendship can be traced back to the 1960s, when they started to immerse themselves in the art of printmaking in the workshop of Maring Llamado Reyes. Nuyda recalls that even during Bencab's European expatriation from the 1960s to the 1970s, they still found ways to catch up. "Ben, Pandy, and I saw each other in the early seventies in London and Paris," Nuyda says. Wilwayco and Nuyda first collaborated at their In2uition joint exhibit in 2005, and was attended by Cabrera. Nuyda suggested the idea of a group exhibit between him, Wilwayco, and Bencab. But it was Wilwayco who came up with the idea of a four-man show with the addition of Aviado. The show would eventually become FourPlay I. Thus, in all its facets, this work provides a fascinating insight into the creative chemistry—and special bond— among Bencab, Wilwayco, Nuyda, and Aviado, who have all found life-long companions and friendships in the presence of each other. (A.M.)