Makina

Francis Alingcayon

“Makina”

Acrylic on Canvas

18“ x 24”

2022 

The artwork conveys the type of society that we live in, wherein it has the same model and principle to a huge machine, where everything must have its own role and function as a part of this huge system that is our society.

Francis Alingcayon, He started painting way back in 2016 as a self-thought artist, where he began to explore various forms and colors, arranging them to fit inside the canvas to create a full concept. He’s been primarily working with acrylic and ink and is currently exploring his style in mixed media by painting surreal patterns of infinite boxes, which he describes as being outside the box to see life from a different point or perspective without being caged in one box of thought or idea but to get out and discover many more possibilities. His playful use of whimsical images by combining 3D and 2D flat shapes helps him achieve a more dynamic and natural composition. While painting, he always aims to keep a playful mind by being conscious of the theme and then directly defining it on the canvas, giving the painting a surprising beauty and allowing the artwork to evolve. He has undergone an apprenticeship from 2017 to 2020 under his mentor, Art Lozano, a well-known artist and a silent environmental activist who is based in the Philippines. As an apprentice, he does everything from cleaning the studio to stretching and priming the canvas to carrying heavy paintings and other items to be delivered to the various galleries in Manila, all voluntarily and in exchange for any learning and experience that will be invaluable to his journey as an artist. Being a young apprentice to Art Lozano influenced him to develop a hard-working artist routine that pushed him to develop a style. His art primarily focuses on themes of surrealism intending to explore subjects that pertain to dreams, consciousness, and our human imagination to know what’s inside our internal self as a being. Francis’s artworks were deeply rooted in the psychological narrative of an individual undergoing mental torment and existential issues as a social phenomenon that is being experienced by most individuals unable to fit into the norm of society in our modern world. His artwork does not only involve those with mental problems but also wants to address it to all individuals to let them dig more deeply inside themselves, connecting them to their being, which can help them transcend their suffering and daily issues in life as a process of self-exploration.