Indio-Genius! Tatlong Alamat ng Tagumpay
Kidlat Tahimik
April 23 – May 23, 2024 Atrium, UP Fine Arts Gallery
The UP College of Fine Arts (UPCFA) and the UP Fine Arts Gallery warmly welcome National Artist for Film Kidlat Tahimik with a monumental exhibition of three installation works titled Indio-Genius! Tatlong Alamat ng Tagumpay opening on April 23, 4:30 PM.
The exhibit commemorates the upcoming 503rd anniversary of the Battle of Mactan which felled the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan (FM) on April 27, 1521, in Cebu— an event that set into motion a history of local and indigenous resistance to foreign rule and ushered in a nascent turn towards colonial rule and nationalism.
The exhibit unveils a suite of three installations by the artist, which were included in important exhibitions by the artist from 2021 to 2023. At the UP Fine Arts Gallery, these three works are presented as the Bagong Alamat series:
• Bagong Alamat 1: Sagupaan ng Dalawang Bathala ng Hanging: Ifugao Goddess of the Wind Inhabian Blows Down Hollywood Goddess of the Wind Marilyn Monroe
• Bagong Alamat 2: Tsunami of Protectors Stops Trojan Horse of Hollywood
• Bagong Alamat 3: Bulakna (Wife of Lapu-Lapu) Strikes Down Ferdinand
Magellan with an Arnis Stick
The works were previously shown from October 20, 2021, to March 6, 2022, at the “Magellan, Marilyn, Mickey & Fr. Dámaso. 500 Years of Conquistador RockStars” exhibit at the Palacio de Cristal del Retiro, Madrid, built in 1887 to showcase Philippine flora and fauna at the Exposición General de Las Islas Filipinas. They were then featured in the artist’s homecoming exhibition, “INDIO-GENIUS: 500 Taon ng Labanang Kultural (1521-2021)” in 2023 at the National Museum of Anthropology in Manila.
These works are part of the artist’s installations which delve into the cultural struggles and aspirations of the Filipino people, deploying indigenous materials, traditions, and narratives to comment on the persistence of cultural imperialism and neocolonialism. In presenting counter-mythologies and alternative stories rooted in local history and events, Kidlat Tahimik challenges the public to reclaim narratives of resistance.
The gallery is open to the public from Tuesdays to Saturdays, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Inquiries may be sent to Lisa Ito-Tapang, curator of the UP Fine Arts Gallery, through cfagallery.upd@up.edu.ph.