Domesticated Toddler T-Shirt

A menacing Doberman seems awkward, almost funny, in his flowery shirt. One woman holds a belt and a piece of fried chicken. The other woman directly kneels behind the canine. The background is adorned with a simple light bulb and a fence is visible outside the house. It takes some Filipino perspective to understand this. The light is the - ilaw ng tahanan - the mother. The fence, the - haligi ng tahanan - the father. The belt acknowledges who takes the lead in the family - may hawak/suot ng sinturon. The fried chicken drumstick alludes to eating one's pride. The suggestive sexual position of one woman behind the dog is naturally for men only. This in essence is about the change of patriarchal roles in the family institution. Simply put, this painting is about the emergence of "housebands". Would you dare tease this Doberman about it?

I paint visual narratives. I try to create stories with themes that range from the blissful to the brooding. Typically, my compositions are laden with common and personal symbolism. My works seem to have disconnected elements but they are in fact linked in the way that I see them. To the audience, however, they are like puzzles; open to varied personal interpretations. I don’t like to confine myself in a box. Some days I paint social commentaries. Other days I just paint my personal observations of issues that pertain to almost anything under the sun - this can be political, social, environmental, religious, cultural, and even agricultural. I try to paint realities in, out, and of life. Early in my career as a painter, I was mostly...