French artist, Sagada potters in ‘Beyond the Roots’ exhibit

Beyond the Roots is a joint exhibit featuring new works by artists Tessie Baldo, Siegrid Bangyay and Jean-François Bertrand. The pieces on display are playful explorations of culture and identity, challenging each creator to trace their roots while at the same time wondering what lies beyond.

The Sagada artists, Tessie and Siegrid, stay true to pottery as their mastered medium while visiting multimedia artist Jean-François tries his hand at the clay. The resulting objects are made of materials sourced from Sagada’s rich clay deposits and feature designs and motifs evocative of home, wherever the artist decides that is. The use of high-fire kilns after glazing also lends character to the pieces whose colors come as a surprise upon firing.

Notable here is the collaboration between French artist Jean-François and Sagada potters, Tessie and Siegrid. The conversations that ensued between them in the months spent processing clay together were in themselves exemplars of what it means to go beyond the roots, to share a sense of who they are with one another and in the process, grow as artists.

In this show, they take root as a collective, inviting viewers into the dialogue they have begun and hoping that others too might pause to examine their roots and ask what lies beyond them.

Beyond the Roots is on exhibit from May 3 to June 29, at the Alliance Française de Manille Gallery.

Alliance Française de Manille Gallery is located at 209 Nicanor Garcia St., Bel-Air II, Makati City.