Exhibitions

As early as a decade ago, art historian Dr. Reuben Ramas Cañete had already written an eye opener of an essay pinpointing Dominic Rubio as one of the foremost Philippine artists of this generation. Dr. Cañete cited Rubio as “having carved a unique niche in Philippine and South East Asian Contemporary Art as an imager of a collective colonial past where modernity, tradition and the human identity of its ethnically diverse and socially hybridized subjects perform a reiteration of selfhood.” Cañete underscored that Rubio’s success comes from his ability to make his public “see themselves” thru his paintings. Viewers and collectors have no difficulty in relating to the subjects in the paintings of Rubio. Rubio has had a series of successful shows and projects highlighted by his accomplishments particularly these past two years these past two years which included a sold-out exhibition in Dubai titled “Moving Boundaries”. Rubio has also been Galerie Joaquin’s carrier artist in its new gallery in Madrid and will likewise be at the forefront of the gallery’s initiative in the forthcoming L.A. Art Fair in February 2024.

Rubio recent shows include:

• October 30 to November 15, 2021: “New Day Dawning” at Galerie Joaquin BGC
• December 27, 2021 to January 15, 2022: “Rubio and Friends” at Galerie Joaquin Rockwell
• December 24, 2022 to January 2, 2023: “Dominic Rubio: Life is a Journey” at Galerie Joaquin Rockwell
• January 28, 2022 to February 6, 2023: “Tipos del Pais” at Galerie Joaquin BGC
• March 18 to April 13, 2023: “Moving Boundaries” Artiana Dubai
• June 10 to 16, 2023: “Pamana” at Galerie Raphael UPTC
• August 8-17, 2023: “Pamana” South of Manila at Art Lounge Manila-Molito

Galerie Joaquin’s forthcoming project “Dominic Rubio x Augmented Reality: Pagdiriwang” is something that the local art scene is expectantly looking forward to. In this project, Rubio will be presenting 30 major works in oil on canvas. The title “Pagdiriwang” is apt indeed because not only is it is celebratory of the artist’s 53rd birthday but also because it is also the celebration of the Filipino way of life and Rubio’s triumph as a full-fledged master of his genre. In this exhibit, Rubio presents the Filipino as part of a community, as part of a family, as part of a group of people as they go about their day to day activities. Rubio’s charm is that he is able to take images from our past whether it be the colonial, recent or distant past and combine them with modern day activities.

Rubio has always been a trailblazer having been one of the earlier Filipino artists ever auctioned in the major auction houses in Singapore. He is also one of the first local artist to be collected by international collectors whether they be from India, Poland, Canada, USA, Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Thailand and other countries in the world.

In particular, this forthcoming exhibit is a trailblazing one indeed because in this one Rubio combines with state of the art technology to allow collectors to appreciate his work even more. In these major works of oil on canvas collectors will have the capability to use augmented reality to see how these artworks move. In cooperation with the technological expertise of Scarletbox, Rubio’s Pagdiriwang project will provide viewers and collectors the opportunity to use apps on their smartphones or computers to be able to see the artworks actually come to life. Galerie Joaquin is one of the first to present art using this advanced technology for Rubio’s stellar art masterpieces. Aside from the paintings, collectors will be afforded a giclee print of their particular painting as well as the augmented reality platform.

“Rubio X Augmented Reality: Pagdiriwang” opens on December 22, 2023 Friday and runs until January 04, 2023. The artist’s reception and celebration will be in Galerie Joaquin Rockwell on December 27, 2023 Wednesday which is Rubio’s birthday. For inquiries, contact +63 915 4145502 or email galeriejoaquin@gmail.com.