Bakawan 1974

Here we see Roberto Chabet's 'Bakawan' depicted in a black and white photograph. It makes me think of a stage set, an installation that's both simple and mysterious, seen through a doorway. I imagine Chabet in the gallery, carefully arranging these vertical elements, perhaps salvaged wood, each one a little different, suspended in space. What a sense of lightness and depth he creates! I bet that the light in the room cast subtle shadows, playing with our perception. Chabet, who was known as the father of conceptual art in the Philippines, was always questioning and pushing boundaries. There's a rawness here, an unpretentious quality, like Arte Povera, but with its own unique vocabulary. This work reminds me of Fred Sandback's use of simple materials to define space, but Chabet adds a layer of cultural and environmental resonance. Artists are always responding to one another, remixing ideas across time and place, aren't they? 'Bakawan' invites us to contemplate the beauty of the everyday, the potential for poetry in the most humble of materials.