Two of Noelle Katigbak Tan’s series, Drawing and Untitled, are currently being shown at Silverlens Gallery in Manila.
TOP TO BOTTOM, from (”Drawing“)
© Noelle Katigbak Tan, 2003-2005
Drawing comprises of landscapes that are overexposed in the darkroom, creating a subliminal and surreal look. Familiar elements are abstracted into sketches on photographic paper.
TOP TO BOTTOM, from (”Untitled“)
© Noelle Katigbak Tan, 2001-2002
Going in the other direction, Untitled consists of black prints punctuated with the occasional burst of light. It’s easy to see how she developed Drawing after working on this series.
Paul Roth, Curator of Photography and Media Arts at the Corcoran Gallery of Art describes Tan’s works as “conceptual explorations of our current social unease and technical forays to the medium’s outer limits” which “elide detail to suggest submerged truths; and dissipate reality to explore the unknown”.
The show is still on now at Silverlens Gallery, 2/F YMC Bldg. 2, 2320 Pasong Tamo Extension, Makati City.
[Excerpt via Philippine Photography Scene]
love the first two pieces, i’ve been interested in minimalist work lately … especially heavily white pieces that use very few visual elements to draw someone in and convey a message. in many ways, it feels like an appropriate response to the crazy media world we’re in now … being so super-saturated in images from advertising and what not, only by selecting a single visual element and drawing the viewer into it you are able to say something new, or at least say it in a fresh way.
Really nice work. It reminds me the “humans” series by Mohammadreza Mirzaei, that is even more minimalistic. Have you ever seen it? If you are interested you can find an interview (in english) with him on my blog camera obscura.
Thank you for your nice blog
Fabiano Busdraghi
luke: much agreed on that. however i’ve been interested in abstractions from normal objects lately! heh, more of a maximalist approach.
thanks for the link fabusdr!
I’ve followed her work the last few years and I’m more impressed than ever. Despite her intense precision and her amazing ability to make the simple complex, this current collection possesses an air of quiet curiosity, much like the loveliness of the artist herself. I’ve been in India the last few months, and I travel with a piece from her black collection, and I cannot tell you how joyfully evocative her work is even, and perhaps especially, to audiences. Message to Noelle: keep up the fantastic work and I miss year much. –marcus