Exploring socio-political themes that center on urban decay, Baluyot presents an installation work assessing links between personal and collective narratives tied to the transportation industry. As the government's Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program takes into effect, phasing out the iconic jeepneys, the artist reflects on his family's history of ferrying commuters for over two generations. The exhibition highlights challenges and criticisms of inconsiderate forms of change and development.
Renz Baluyot (b. 1989, Saudi Arabia) explores socio-political narratives centered on urban decay. His works illustrate the disintegration of the environment and society as effects of imposed oppressive political and economic power. In portraying these issues, Baluyot examines the people's reception to these subtle but punitive atrocities as we become observers of our realities. Baluyot's paintings are often drawn from locations and resources that reference images from museums and institutional archives on subjects that discuss migrations, wars, territorial conflicts, and colonization, among others.
Baluyot received his BFA from the University of the Philippines, Diliman, and was an artist-in-residence at the Bellas Artes Projects (Bataan, Philippines). In 2019, he was selected for a fellowship grant at the Vermont Studio Centre (USA). His work was part of the exhibition Living Earth: Contemporary Philippine Art, curated by Luca Beatrice and Patrick Flores in Milan, Italy. Baluyot received the Juror's Choice Award of Merit in the 25th Philippine Art Awards (2020) and was one of the finalists in the Ateneo Art Awards – Fernando Zóbel Prizes for Visual Art (2021) for his exhibition, Empire at West Gallery. He lives and works in Manila, Philippines.
Selected Works from God Bless Our Trip
Renz Baluyot, God Bless Our Trip I, Found object, acrylic rod, wooden base, lighting fixtures, 2023, Size variable
Renz Baluyot, God Bless Our Trip II, Sublimation print on fabric, 2023, 27.5 x 61 cm
Renz Baluyot, God Bless Our Trip III, Sublimation print on fabric, 2023, 27.5 x 61 cm
Renz Baluyot, God Bless Our Trip IV, 2023, Folding bed, fiberglass mannequin, fabric, stainless steel rods, silkscreen on rust dye, fresh sampaguita, Size variable