Exhibitions

Raul Isidro’s artistic expression has always been driven by three visual imperatives: the inherent abstraction within nature, pattern, and unified light.

Color harmony is a core instinct for Isidro. The Philippine landscape, with its atmosphere and unified light, is an ideal subject with which he pursues his interest. For “The Natural State of Being”, the artist expresses a tradition of respect for the healing power of nature. He intends to investigate humanity's valuable and fundamental relationship to the natural world as detailed in the exquisite brushstrokes and delicate layering of his chosen medium.

The works for “The Natural State of Being” is comprised of the Philippines’ monumental topographic formations depicting life forms with its intricate crystalline symmetry. Isidro’s art continues to express his dedication to a healthy ecosystem and humanity's intrinsic connection to nature. Practicing rigorous essentialism, he works to reveal the divine concealed within the ordinary. This requires slowing down, maintaining awareness and paying close attention to details. Serendipity and chance are essential to Isidro’s work; as he explores and examines the tension between chaos and order. This process actively connects him with his environment, his existence, his reality.

Raul Isidro's art recalls a place to the viewer, evoking a sublime reality from the depths of memory and recollection. The artist believes in the need to integrate man’s relationship with nature as we have done so readily with technology. For him, these are responsibilities that accompany life, both in art and in the natural world.

An influential personality from the ‘60s to the present, Raul Isidro (b.1943) is a true visionary, never exhausted in exploring and venturing in the use of experimental media. He has worked on sculptures and started working on mixed media abstracts in the ‘60s with the use of acrylic, firstly introduced in the country at the time. He experimented with the use of gold leaf on canvas in the late ‘80s while in the United States, but has shown it publicly only in the early ‘90s. The changing mood of mother earth and the environment predominantly influence Isidro’s works.

A celebrated artist and member of the community, Raul Isidro was awarded the Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) in 1979, the Outstanding Samareño Award in 2011, and the Outstanding Thomasian Award in 2006.

Even after more than a hundred solo and group exhibits held in the country and in major cities in the U.S., Israel, India, Indonesia, Spain, West Germany, France, the Netherlands, Hong Kong, China and Singapore, Raul Isidro remains the same dedicated artist as he was since the beginning.

“The Natural State of Being” by Raul Isidro will be on view from March 2 to 14, 2021. Galerie Joaquin is located on the 3rd level of The Podium, ADB Avenue, Ortigas Center, Mandaluyong City. For more information, contact +63 926 7227925 or email podium.galeriejoaquin@gmail.com.