RUEL CAASI

Visual artist Ruel Caasi displayed interest in art at the age of five.  At this early stage, he sketched cartoons and made drawings for his older cousins’ projects.  In high school, he attended series of formal workshops under Fernando B. Sena and later became the latter’s workshop assistant.  At 16, he participated in group exhibits with the Kabataang Tondo Art Group (KATAG) headed by Sena.  Although his works were confined to the traditional form, he was also drawn to abstractionism, particularly the black and white works of Lao Lianben. Caasi became a member of the Kalipunan ng Manlilikha ng Sining Pilipinas (KAMASIPI) in the late 80’s.  This enabled him to interact with fellow artists from Mabini and other Manila-based artists with whom he staged exhibits and exposed him to other techniques.  He was able to view Bob Feleo’s exhibits in Hiraya gallery and was fascinated by the work.  He met Raymund Maliwat who introduced him to mixed media.  His first mixed media piece, shown at the Arte Etnika Exhibits at the National Museum on 1990, received the Critic’s Choice Award for this category.  He continued with this trend, producing socially conscious ethnic-inspired works using non-traditional materials. His works revealed social awareness and facilitated his incorporation to the SR group and became a member of the militant cultural group Artista ng Bayan (ABAY).  Here, he was able to work with other politicized artists creating propaganda materials such as posters, murals and effigies and stage designs for the national democratic movement.  It also initiated his exposure to environmental groups as he was tapped for their campaigns and publications.  However, the reaffirmist-rejectionist split within the movement led to Caasi’s disillusionment and ironically, led him to stop painting and explore the field of advertising in year 1994. Although he decided to give up painting, he also found it an effective outlet for his frustration with the movement.  This time, he began painting in abstract, and he called his first non-representational work, "Open Wounds."  During this time, he was chosen by the National Center for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) to represent the National Capital Region in the Art Manila ’97.  This part of the same series earned for him the award Juror’s Choice Award for Non-Representation Painting.  These signaled his return to painting and the use of experimental media in his works. His comeback in the art scene was followed by his return to the movement, primarily on the environmental.  He staged school tours of installations and photo exhibits on the State of the Philippine Environment and the First Quarter Storm in different universities.   He also coordinated and facilitated series of art workshops sponsored by the Global Mural Project – Australia for the children of Payatas Garbage Dump Site.  But his return was short-lived as he realized that his wounds never really healed.  He left the movement for the second time, but he carried with him the consciousness and responsibility of an SR artist.

Early "Tabula Rasa" series.  Mixed media on paper. 2003.

In 2003, he was the Drawing Room’s featured artist at the Rockwell, where he showcased the new series "Tabula Rasa."  It mirrored his desire for a clean start in his art and paved the way for his long-delayed first major one-man exhibit in June 2004 at the Drawing Room, Makati.  Entitled "Sensations and Reflections," it was a protraction of his Tabula Rasa project which is the substance of his reinvention. On July 30 to August 11, 2004, Caasi’s second solo exhibit, entitled "Princess Lea, Microwavables at Ilang Patak," showcased recent works on traditional and non-traditional media and tackles three different but essential issues: women, political and environmental. As the Chinese proverb goes, the more we change, the more we stay the same - his style and technique has evolved but his subject endures. Watch out for more photos of Caasi's early works.