Words and photos by the artistSite-specific installation: life-size wooden sculptures on sidewalks and waiting shed for public transport passengers in Tanjay City, Negros OrientalDuring this pandemic, the feeling of waiting is amplified for all of us. Even if we think we have adjusted to the situation and labeled it the “new normal,” we still experience a sense of waiting. We are not quite there yet to call it normal. Rethink and act fast for safety and sustainability as the pandemic continues. It is about how we act while we're waiting. Whatever each individual is waiting for (ayuda, vaccination, medical help), it is nothing to be ignored, as more people are losing their jobs, going hungry, and simply hoping to live.
Bisan kung giisip nato nga nagpahiangay ta sa kahimtang, nga kini na ang "bag-ong normal," apan dili! Ting, kaning kahimtanga dili ibaliwala.
Even if we think that we are already adjusting to the (pandemic) situation, thinking it's the “new normal”, but no! Ting, this situation cannot be ignored.
Ting, unsay ato gi hulat?
Ting, what are we waiting for?
Then they were gone.
It was devastating to find out the sculptures were nowhere to be found. I am aware that exhibiting the sculptures in a public space is a risk but I was not expecting it to be actually stolen since the sculptures cannot be easily picked up. Each was life size and was made with heavy materials.
Before the incident, preparations included getting approval from the barangay captain and informing street cleaners in which the sculptures were located; these, I thought, added a sense of security, but of course, not a guarantee. Each sculpture was displayed in public spaces for 4 days. I found out on May 18, 2021, that it must have been stolen.
Barangay officials, street cleaners, and residents near the area where just as shocked as I was.
One of the street cleaners found the remains of one sculpture in the area — all that was left was a torso of the wooden figure and two panels.
Sa inyong gi tawag nga “new normal", naay ga problemag makakaon, makabalik trabaho, makaginhawa ug mabuhi pa ba. Ting, tabang, lihok ta.
In what you call the "new normal", there are people worried if they will still be able to eat, get back to work, breath and live. Ting, help, let's move.
ISABEL MARCHELLE FLORDELIZ is a Tanjay-based artist, taking up Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Silliman University. She works mainly on painting and other traditional mediums like prints, drawing, and sculpture. She is interested in abstraction and uses common materials in a painting such as wood frame, canvas, and paint, to further explore what Painting is. She also creates several art pieces for both local and larger businesses.
THE ARTIST