BY JADE SNOW
“Personal Unconscious” ponders on the indivisible wholeness of beings and is the first solo exhibition of Faye Abantao which features an interesting mixed media collection and art installation. The basis for the title is Carl Jung’s personal unconscious that states that “everything of which I know, but of which I am not at the moment thinking”.
Abantao explores the binding power of context over the mind; not the thinking/feeling process itself, but the awareness behind them. She collects and deconstructs archival prints. She expands with a cluster of disciplines which includes origami, digital collage, printing and/or painting.
Every transition, like consciousness, is developed slowly and laboriously:
To tear and fold. Tear the mind-made clutter away so that only silence remains. Separate yourself from what “your” and “self” might mean. Recognize the two-fold presence of content (experiences) and structure (concept of self). Only within the separation can a space for consciousness arise. It is a place from which all beginnings came to be. Only within that space will you encounter inner peace; unharmed by the past.
To make the same. Identification comes from the Latin words “idem” (same) and “facere” (to make). To identify with others literally translates to finding one’s self in others rather than seeing their otherness exclusively. Somewhere in the sameness that links “my-self” is a room of profound calmness. It is a place where everything yet to unfold is kept. Only within that space will I encounter inner strength; unburdened by the future.
To become. The concept of detaching from one’s mind exists in all spiritual practices. Metanoia which is commonly understood as a “change of heart” translates more accurately to “beyond the mind”. To have thought, to have felt, to have done…The sum of all such contents is a space where the personal unconscious rests. Spaciousness is found in the acceptance of its overwhelming totality. It is a place where we are now. Only within this space will we encounter inner joy; at home in the present.
Faye Aleya Abantao is a 2015 graduate of La Consolacion College of Fine Arts, major in Advertising. She has had numerous group shows in and around the country, and is perceived as one of the upcoming Negrense names in visual arts.
“Personal Unconscious” is curated by Guinevere Decena and opened yesterday at the Orange Project main gallery in Bacolod City. It is available for viewing until October 31.*
