#CulturePH - CCP Announces the 2024 Thirteen Artists Awards Recipients

The Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) is thrilled to announce the recipients of the prestigious 2024 Thirteen Artists Awards (TAA). This award celebrates young visual artists whose innovative practices have significantly contributed to the growth and evolution of contemporary Philippine art. Let's meet this year's talented awardees: Catalina Africa, Denver Garza, Russ Ligtas, Ella Mendoza, Henrielle Baltazar Pagkaliwangan, Issay Rodriguez, Luis Antonio Santos, Joshua Serafin, Jel Suarez, Tekla Tamoria, Derek Tumala, Vien Valencia, and Liv Vinluan.

Celebrating Artistic Innovation

Each of these artists brings a unique perspective and creative approach to their work:

Catalina Africa: A multidisciplinary artist who uses shapeshifting and earth channeling as her primary modes of expression, creating artworks that invoke the natural landscape.

Denver Garza: Formerly a mental health worker, Garza explores the psyche and psychosocial aspects of life through various media, reflecting on identity, beliefs, and social dynamics.

Russ Ligtas: This Cebu-born artist draws inspiration from alter egos to explore the Filipino body as a mythological and historical artifact.

Ella Mendoza: Starting with functional ceramics, Mendoza now creates contemporary sculptural and installation works that play on traditional vessels.

Henrielle Baltazar Pagkaliwangan: She examines Philippine history and material culture through hand-pulled prints and drawings, inspired by natural history illustration and taxonomy.

Issay Rodriguez: Her art focuses on humanism and ecology, using archival research and community engagements to explore thoughts, emotions, and values.

Luis Antonio Santos: Through paintings and photography, Santos delves into themes of memory, entropy, isolation, and longing, using everyday materials as metaphors.

Joshua Serafin: A multidisciplinary artist from Bacolod, Serafin combines dance, performance, visual arts, and choreography to explore themes of transmigration and queer politics.

Jel Suarez: A self-taught artist who uses collage to reinterpret visual phenomena, creating new texts from natural objects and surplus materials.

Tekla Tamoria: After a stint in the corporate world, Tamoria pursued tailoring and now works with textiles, drawing inspiration from costume design and fractal patterns.

Derek Tumala: His art practice revolves around science and nature, exploring interconnectedness through various forms of art and technology.

Vien Valencia: Valencia's work intersects community, time, site, process, and anthropology, challenging traditional methods of archiving.

Liv Vinluan: Her art investigates death, mortality, and the cyclicality of histories, reflecting on human character and behavior.

The Selection Process

The awardees were chosen from 108 nominations through a rigorous evaluation process. The CCP Visual Arts and Museum Division (CCP VAMD) received 82 submissions from various art groups, museum and gallery directors, curators, art critics, art educators, and former Thirteen Artists Awardees. The selection committee, comprising esteemed artists and CCP VAMD officers, assessed each nominee's portfolio based on artistic innovation, integrity, and engagement with contemporary themes.

A Legacy of Excellence

Now in its 54th year, the Thirteen Artists Awards began as a curatorial project by the CCP Museum's first curator, Roberto Chabet. It aimed to showcase Filipino artists who sought to renew and strengthen artmaking and art thinking in the Philippines. Over the years, the awards have evolved into a triennial event, recognizing artists who have demonstrated sustained artistic activity and have the potential to inspire the future of Philippine art.

For more information about the CCP Thirteen Artists Awards, visit the Thirteen Artists website or follow the official CCP and CCP VAMD social media accounts on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.

Celebrate the creativity and innovation of these remarkable artists and stay tuned for more updates from the Cultural Center of the Philippines!