Artist Statement
I make sewn paintings and installations that are rooted in geometric abstraction. I am mending this lineage of abstraction through the use of textiles; stitching a patchwork of multivalent identity that explores the elastic nature of queerness and reflects my Filipino heritage.
Color, (a)symmetry, materiality and imperfection are formally and conceptually interwoven. Made with hand-dyed fabrics, second-hand clothing, hand woven fibers and weathered canvas, the works resemble flags or quilts, often carrying physical traces of the bodies that wore them, imbuing the work with intimacy and personal history.
Honoring the textile traditions of my heritage, I incorporate motifs and color of Philippine textiles. I use dizzying patterns believed to ward off evil spirits and the diamond shape to symbolize a protective and watchful eye. Color is vital to my work. My relationship to color is not passive. It is political, it’s personal, it’s emotional, it is felt and it is in my very being.
