by Enrico J. L. Manlapaz

Artis Corpus Gallery presented Kim Oliveros in his first solo exhibition entitled SUBJUGATION.

The essence of a culture lies in the values that a group of people shares as an entity. These values are held sacred in their hearts. They take pride in it. Cultures are to be respected within the context of the people who practice them. No one has the right to judge them, or for that matter, alter them.

Ancient Japanese have revered two subcultures: the samurai and the geisha. One, of dominance; the other, of subjugation. In their eyes, both are positive. Both are proper. Both are disciplines. None have the right to say otherwise.

For men to become samurai, they undergo years of training in the art of warfare. For women to become geisha, they undergo years of perfecting the art of servitude and satisfaction. Not only are these passions, but commitments.

Colonizing cultures have their own way of looking at others. In the eyes of the oppressor, colonized cultures are inferior to theirs. Thus, they impose their values on the people they forcibly dominate.

Such is the case of Japan. Such is the case of the Americans interfering with the affairs of the Japanese. Such is the case of Philippines having been raped by major streams of imperialism.

In this exhibition, Kim Oliveros essays on the effects of American interference on the sanctity of the geisha. Promises of marriages between soldier and geisha have led to hara-kiri.

Americans have reduced the nobility of the geisha into what they have perfected all these years: commercialism. They have made prostitutes of them.

Two paintings in this exhibition sum up the message: the aggressor portrayed by the stud of a deer, and the prostitute. The artist leaves the rest of the story to the viewer.

Exhibit opened last Saturday, April 9, 2011, in the Artis Corpus Gallery of Sining Kamalig, Gateway Mall, Araneta Center, Cubao, Quezon City, Philippines. Exhibition runs till April 30, 2011. Gallery opens daily 12 noon till 9 pm. Entrance is free.