Honoring rice in the form of art became possible through the Butil, Buhay, Sining, at Kulay: A Rice Art Exhibit that was launched on Oct. 27 at the DA-Crop Biotechnology Center within DA-PhilRice CES.
The heart and soul of the artworks is 71-year-old rice artist Herminigildo “Hermisanto” Santos, one of the pioneers of rice art in Asia.
The one-man exhibit opened in celebration of the 37th Anniversary of DA-PhilRice, Museum and Galleries Month, and National Rice Awareness Month. It featured 35 of his artworks, including Hermisanto’s installation art ‘Pagpupugay sa mga Magsasaka,’ which honors Filipino farmers for their hard work.
Manong Hermi—as he likes to be called—is known for his incorporation of indigenous elements in his artworks and the use of rice grains as his medium.
He started his material exploration in 2007 and decided to go with rice as part of his art-making as he believes that rice is the real essence of the Filipino spirit.
“Choosing rice as a medium enables me to connect and relate to my audience as it is embedded in our culture and the Filipino identity; and because rice is more than food, it is a way of living,” he expounded.
Hermisanto expressed his gratitude to DA-PhilRice for giving him the opportunity to showcase his artworks. He declared interest in a joint exhibition with artists of the Rice Science Museum as he commended the rice artworks and rice-themed renditions displayed around the Institute.
