ABOUT THE WORK

Emmanuel Garibay is widely considered to have inherited the Neo-Realist tradition and style of Hernando R. Ocampo. However, Garibay resists being called a social realist, saying in an August 2020 interview with Lisa Guerrero Nakpil: “I prefer not to be pigeon-holed, to present different perspectives that the viewer may find in my works, so that he may contribute to the narrative himself.” Further expounding on the distinctive characteristic of the Filipino, he stated: “My works celebrate the complex nature of the Filipino. There is nobody else in the world like him. He is perplexing: easy-going in the face of the reality of calamities in his life. These questions go beyond current politics. I want to urge the appreciation of where we are now – not as a lamentation but as a vision of hope” Esteemed scholar Jonathan Beller has described his art as veering towards the inquisitive but imbued with intense passion and expressions. For Garibay, art is a platform for political and social consciousness. The artist believes that art can ignite discourses and stimulate societal change.