DEC13_SUPERDUPERFINAL

From Bacolod to Roxas:
LOOKING BACKWARD,
SURGING FORWARD
by Ma. Cecilia Locsin-Nava, Ph.D.
After three past hostings (1990, 1992, 2014) Bacolod welcomed
back on November 13-16,2020 the fourth VIVA ExCon to its
shores. A local self-help effort designed to level the playing field for
provincial artists, VIVA ExCon was mainly the handiwork of Black
Artists of Asia (BAA), a handful of dynamic, socially committed
visual artists still active in the art scene. Originally composed of
Norberto “Peewee” Roldan, Charlie Co, Nunelucio Alvarado and
Dennis Ascalon, the group traces its roots to Pamilya Pintura, a
loose aggrupation of artists that banded together in 1980 initially
based in La Consolacion College. Although VIVA ExCon has since
then been adopted by the National Commission for Culture and
the Arts (NCCA) as the basis for local initiatives, it did not initially
get government support until it succeeded in taking its baby steps
in 1990, then CCP extended support in 1992 for the 2nd VIVA in
Bacolod and NCCA in 1996 for the 4th VIVA in Iloilo.
Organized as both an exhibition and conference, the first component
was meant not only to “showcase contemporary works of visual arts
from the different islands” but also to” promote visual art forms
reflective of the islands’ cultural influences, historical traditions
and current social situations aside from encouraging innovative,
experimental or collaborative works among Visayan visual artists.”
Jamming Session at VIVA ExCon 2, Bacolod City
On the other hand, the second component was meant to provide
a “mechanics for the discussion and assessment of parallel artistic
development in the islands, give an opportunity for analyses of
academic theories and other relevant issues and serve as the context
for a better understanding of various aspects of contemporary art
practices.” It is likewise meant to provide a “historical perspective
on the various art and craft traditions of the islands and generate
resolutions.”
156
Given this heavy burden, VIVA ExCon’s 28-year peregrinations
from Bacolod (1990, 1992, 2014) to Dumaguete (1994, 2012)
to Iloilo (1996, 2016) to Roxas City (2018) to Cebu (1998,2008,
2010) to Tacloban, Leyte (2000) to Tagbilaran, Bohol (2002)
and to Calbayog, Samar (2006) had been anything but smooth.
Nevertheless, it has endured.
Designed to update and upgrade Visayan artists, the conference/
exhibit is a work in progress that continues to fine-tune its varied
elements as it builds on its past experiences, looking backward in
order to surge forward. Significantly, noting the recommendation
in NCCA’s 2008 report of the need to subsidize the attendance of
more struggling artists, the first thing the organizers of the 2014