Pinky Peralta

 Art in enlightened form

  By Earl D.C. Bracamonte

After finally finding her true calling, visual artist Pinky Peralta mounts her first solo exhibit at the Gateway Gallery towards the end of the month. Simply dubbed “On The Edge,” the two-week show features over fifty all-watercolor paintings of varied sizes, as well as a three-series dyptych inspired by the deepness of water. 

“On The Edge alludes to the transition of my painted subjects of flowers to the very edge of abstraction that highlights most of my later works. Art found me as a young girl, nurtured by the oil paintings of my grandfather, a self taught artist. Years later, while I was studying Interior Design at UP Diliman, another form of art blossomed in my heart. My love for watercolor was ignited at the summer workshops I joined. But it wasn’t until 2016 that I embraced watercolor painting in full expression and pursuit. Watercolor, for me, captures the fluidity and translucence not palpable in other media. Its immediacy and effervescence provide a more spontaneous and energetic expression as a brushstroke releases water and pigment to do their work,” shared the owner of the erstwhile The Room Upstairs in Makati City, an artworks gallery that unfortunately closed in 2011.

“What a year it has been. Celebrate with me for the fruitful four years of pursuing this gift of watercolor. My theme is the experience of a magnified state. Where there is nothing you can do but just worship the Supreme Being who created the billowy, sensuous display of the heavens. That He chose me to pick up a brush and let everyone experience it is enough for me,” she continued.

Watercolor is usually diluted with water to the point where it is translucent, and applied to the paper, in this instance, cotton paper, with broad areas known as washes. Light-colored cotton paper is left to create highlights and washes applied over one another to achieve gradiation of tone. Watercolor lends itself well to the creation of atmospheric effects and was particularly popular with English eighteenth- and nineteenth century landscape painters such as John Robert Crozerts and JMW Turner.

“Watercolor is difficult because you need to know its behavior as water dries up after some time. For the exhibit, I used the full spectrum of colors to achieve the effect of clouds at certain times of the day. My watercolor journey has been blessed by art lessons both local and international - under such masters as Yuko Nagayama (Japan), Alvaro Castagnet (Uruguay), Charles Reid and Stanley Keith (USA), and Eudes Correa (Portugal). These master colorists imparted a lasting impression on the style that I would later harness as my own. The quarantine offered the opportunity to make the paintings,” revealed Peralta.

Abstraction, as a form of art, does not seek to represent the world around us. The term is applicable to any stroke that does not represent recognizable objects, but refers particularly to forms of 20th century art in which the idea as imitation of nature has been abandoned. Wassily Kandinsky, Pet Mondrian, and Kasimir Malevich were among abstraction’s early pioneers.

“This exhibit is a celebration of a miracle. It’s a thanksgiving culled in over fifty works sized from 15” x 25” to 26” x 51” paintings. It has always been my dream to mount a solo show and Gateway Gallery opened the opportunity. During the start of the quarantine, I’ve been running everyday and has looked at the sky and the skylines for inspiration.

“Our misfortune - the closure of three business undertakings - were blessings in disguise. At the end of my road, God rescued me. He orchestrated everything. Dreams starts through fire and God refines them. In one of my morning runs came the eureka moment when God gave me the idea what I’ll finally paint for my exhibit. It is my tribute to God and His creation.

“”I dare not have my solo delve on any other themes except the uttermost attribute of His! His creativity: water, clouds, and land - three entities that make up the earth. Three hallelujahs to the Maker. I am thankful to journey with others by conducting watercolor workshops through my studio as well as to grow with other artists as a member of the Philippine Guild of Watercolorists. As I continue to evolve and nurture as an artist, I am excited to share my own vision and sensibility in my mounted exhibit,” said Peralta, at the close of our phone conversation.

On The Edge starts to run on November 28, and a fortnight thereafter, and is open for public viewing during mall hours at the Gateway Gallery on the fifth level of the Gateway Tower in Araneta City.