Artist with a mission
A MAN who has dedicated a lot of time and effort to the love of the arts is a rare gem. This field may not always offer a high return on investment, and it is a passion that few men venture into.
ManilArt is the longest-running visual arts fair in the Philippines, established in 2009 as the flagship project of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA).
The individual behind this remarkable project was Danny Rayos Del Sol, who was then head of the National Committee in Art Galleries of the NCCA. His vision for the arts is incomparable. He is a visual artist and a curator for ManilART, the National Art Fair of NCCA, and the Annual Sculpture Review (ASR). He is also a humanitarian worker, a corporate executive, and a resource speaker. Born in Taguig, he obtained a degree in BS Psychology at the Far Eastern University, with further studies at the University of Toronto and an MBA at the Ateneo de Manila University. Moreover, he completed an online course in curation at Sotheby’s Institute of Arts.
His father moved him to Canada in 1980 because of his involvement in student activism against the Marcos regime. He returned to the Philippines in 1994 to join the family business. He found his true calling with art when Gallery Nine owner Atty. Amy Loste invited him to exhibit his collections of hobby creations of Ostrich Egg carvings in 2007, and the rest is history. Although he is an established visual artist, he aims to do more.
Since 2009, the ManilArt Fair has attracted prestigious galleries and many astute art connoisseurs in the country; even the nearby ASEAN countries noted the magnitude of this event. Danny did not stop with the ManilArt project. Instead, he collaborated with other prominent artists in Mindanao and expanded the project. He challenged and pushed himself out of his comfort zone, took on new responsibilities, and sometimes even spent his own money to make the project happen. His efforts paid off as the Mindanao art fair is now in its 8th year. It was Danny’s initiative that led to the 1st Mindanao Art Fair in 2019, advocacy of Mindanao artist Rey Mudjahid “Kublai” Ponce Millan. The fair aimed to recognize the need for Mindanao artists to step up and become critical players in the Philippine art scene while ensuring they remain rooted in their identity as Mindanao artists.
Danny didn’t stop after the success of the Mindanao Art Fair. He took a plane and negotiated with the leading art personalities in the Visayas region. The NCCA, in collaboration with the Cebu Design Week Inc., Office of the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas, Sacred Heart School for Boys Batch 1985 Foundation, and the Cebu Furniture Industries Foundation, organized the inaugural Visayas Art Fair at Montebello Hotel in Cebu City. It opened on December 16, 2021. Indeed, Danny is everywhere, indefatigable and ready to go to his next project.
Part of Danny’s vision is the Luzon Art Fair. The provincial government of Tarlac, in partnership with the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA), presented the inaugural Luzon Art Fair. This event took place from Oct. 26 to 29, 2023, at Diwa ng Tarlac and Bulwagan ng Kanlahi, Tarlac, organized by the Tarlac Provincial Tourism Office in collaboration with the Got Heart Foundation and sponsored by Katinko, Boysen, and the Metrobank Foundation.
His heart belongs to art; he has built the Galerie Du Soleil to give the up-and-coming artists a platform to showcase their works.
He has organized the Taguig Artists Group to help them in the many aspects of the arts, especially with proper pricing, aesthetics assistance, and securing support from the local government. This is a project he envisioned to be replicated throughout the country. Indeed, his hands are full, but he has many plans that make him smile.
At present, he is working together with Kublai Millan (also known as Kublai), a painter, sculptor, curator, and cultural influencer from Mindanao, as well as Agi Pagkatipunan, a renowned furniture maker and designer, and several other prominent artists.
They are collaborating on a massive art project. Mind-blowing, that’s how busy this humble man is, but nobody can stop him now; this is just the beginning of more art projects on the horizon. Indeed, he is an artist with a mission.