Now on its 8th year, Art Fair Philippines remains dedicated to fulfilling its mission of expanding the audience for Philippine visual art. The 2020 edition of the fair, slated from February 21 to 23 at The Link carpark in Makati City, will present new components that are in line with its mission.

Augmenting the learning opportunities at the fair, Art Fair Philippines is introducing a new section called ArtFairPH/Open Studios. This section, complementing ArtFairPH/Talks, will present a series of workshops with respected practitioners in the fields of arts and culture, including a two-day workshop on photography with Paco Guerrero; lighting techniques for photographers with Neal Oshima and Mark Nicdao, and wooden furniture with Benji Reyes. There will also be a demo on watercolor painting techniques with Claude Tayag; cyanotype workshop with Alexis Oshima and Angela Silva; Rubber cutting workshop with Association of Pinoyprintmakers, and a Sculptural Planter-Making workshop with Rita Gudiño of Tahanan Pottery.

Art Fair Philippines 2020 will also introduce the ArtFairPH/Film section, curated by Erwin Romulo, Philbert Dy, and Teddy Co. This section aims to celebrate the last 100 years of Philippine cinema and the possibilities for the next hundred. It will also screen a selection of the best feature-length and short films, narrative and experimental, documentary and animation, to showcase the diversity of Philippine cinema.

ArtFairPH/Incubators are creative spaces outside the mainstream gallery format including exhibitors art/n23, Giatay, Limbo, Loadnadito projects, Project 20, and Signum. In this section, art/n23 will present a virtual reality piece by Issay Rodriguez. Curated by Sandra Palomar, Rodriguez's work will immerse the audience in a simulated and interactive beehive-like environment.

This year, Art Fair Philippines is also proud to present a special cultural exchange project with the Embassy of Italy in Manila, highlighted by the participation of Galleria Tiziana Di Caro, a contemporary art gallery from Naples, Italy.

The ArtFairPH/Projects section will feature new commissions in the form of interactive and/or thought-provoking installations by internationally established Filipino visual artists. For this year, Art Fair Philippines is working with art consultant Norman Crisologo, who takes on conceptualized exhibition projects for art galleries.

The 2020 featured artists include a special exhibition in cooperation with the estate of the late Onib Olmedo. Drawings from the family's collection will highlight the influence that Olmedo exerted on a good number of artists working today.

Other artists mounting special exhibits include Salvador Joel Alonday, Perry Argel, Jaime De Guzman, Roedil Joe Geraldo, Jellyfish Kisses, Gene Paul Martin, and Neil Pasilan. Also in this section is Carlo Villafuerte, the 2020 recipient of the Karen H. Montinola Selection, a private grant created in homage to art patron Karen Montinola. ArtFairPH/Projects is presented by the Bank of the Philippine Islands.

Hublot, the Official Timekeeper of Art Fair Philippines 2020, will also present new works by Rodel Tapaya.

Art Fair Philippines is also working with New York-based curator and art historian Carina Evangelista in presenting the works of Sol Lewitt, an iconic American artist known for his contributions in Conceptual Art and Minimalism.

This year, Art Fair Philippines welcomes 61 exhibitors from the Philippines and abroad.

The participating exhibitors from the Philippines are: 1335 Mabini / GMJ, Altro Mondo Gallery, ARCHIVO 1984, Art Cube, Art Underground, Art Verité, Artery Art Space, art/n23, Association of Pinoyprintmakers, Avellana Art Gallery, bio | trans | forms, Boston Art Gallery, CANVAS, Denise Weldon | Tom Epperson Photographs, District Gallery, Eskinita Art Gallery, Galerie Roberto, Gallery of Fine Arts, Galerie Stephanie, Giatay, J Studio, Kaida Contemporary, León Gallery, Limbo, Loadnadito projects, Luzviminda, Mariyah Gallery, METRO, Mono8, Orange Project, Paseo Art Gallery, Pintô Art Museum, Project 20, Salcedo Private View, Secret Fresh, Signum, Silverlens, Strange Fruit, Tarzeer Pictures, Tin-aw Art Gallery, Tropical Futures Institute, and Ysobel Art Gallery.

Participating foreign galleries include Art Porters Gallery (Singapore), Artemis Art (Malaysia), Cayón (Spain), ENERGY FIELD (Japan), G13 Gallery (Malaysia), Gajah Gallery (Singapore), GALERIE OVO (Taiwan), Gallery Kogure (Japan), Hanada Gallery (Japan), Kobayashi Gallery (Japan), La Lanta Fine Art (Thailand), Mind Set Art Center (Singapore), Number1 Gallery (Thailand), Nunu Fine Art (Taiwan), SHUKADO (Japan), Vin Gallery (Vietnam), Yavuz Gallery (Singapore), YOD Gallery + Asian Art Center (Japan). The Italian embassy is also bringing Galleria Tiziana di Caro, an art gallery from Naples, Italy.

Tickets are available at artfairphilippines.com and at the fourth-floor reception during the three-day fair from 10:00 AM - 9:00 PM.

For more information and inquiries, please visit the Art Fair Philippines website and follow Art Fair Philippines on Instagram (@artfairph) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/artfairph).

This is a press release from Art Fair Philippines. Minor edits have been made by LoopMe Philippines editors.

Cover images grabbed from Art Fair Philippines' Facebook page.