Israel Pellus Gonzalez
Javier Martinez Cifuentes
Israel Pellus Gonzalez
Javier Martinez Cifuentes
Can you turn resin and fiberglass into bronze?
Yes, as demonstrated by two Spanish sculptors who conducted a 7-day workshop at the College of Fine Arts (CFA).
Javier Martinez Cifuentes and Israel Pellús Gonzalez, sculptors and props designers in Spain, visited the CFA and conducted a series of workshop from August 12 to August 19. They also donated the sculpture they made to the college.
Javier earned a degree in Estudios de EGB y COU at Liceo Zuloaga in 1991 and Diseno Industrial at the Centro de Estudios de la imagen y Communicación in 1993. The 37 year old is currently taking up Master de Diseño por Ordenador, Autocad .
Israel, on the other hand, is 32 years old. He earned a Bahillerato at IB Emilia Pardo Bazan and Tecnico Superior en Artes aplicadas al diseno-Expecialidad Escultura at Escuela de Artes y Oficios “La Palma.”
In their faded jeans and paint-smudged shirts, both may be mistaken for foreign rock musicians or hunky castaways on the reality TV show Survivor. But their talent, professionalism and passion for their craft set them apart as true envoys of the arts: Cesar Caballero, a Spanish painter based in Manila, suggested they visit the Philippines for an intercultural exchange.
The sculptors’ visit was made possible through collaboration between the CFA, the Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional (AECI) and the Embajada de España en Manila (Spanish Embassy in Manila).
Old materials, new techniques. According to the artists, their visit to the CFA gave them the opportunity to share with the Filipinos artists, in particular the students, new art techniques to help them generate more works that can be done in faster and cheaper ways.
To create a sculpture, the artists used fiber glass and epoxy resin which they painted with 10 kilos of bronze paint instead of 1,000 kilos of the metal bronze—which is heavier and more expensive—to make it appear like an authentic bronze sculpture.
This, according to Caballero, their technical assistant and coordinator, was the main purpose of the inter-cultural exchange which is his pet project. He said, “The idea of the exchange is to teach the artists how to apply their works to their everyday life.”
Caballero also said artists can use any material as long as it is done faster and through the proper techniques. This will help them save money and create something similar or closer to their vision.
“You have to think of the size and the weight of the work you’re going to have, from there, you think of the materials that you can use. It’s like, if you want a big piece, something like the sculpture we are working on, in bronze, it’s going to be 1,000 kilos of bronze. That’s very expensive. But with resin and 10 kilos of bronze paint to make it look like bronze, it’s going to be cheaper. And, you can put it anywhere because it’s lighter. So, it is proper technique and knowledge of materials,” said the tanned, pony-tailed Javier.
Sculptors at work. (Left to right) Javier and Israel,
making a mold for the reproduction of
the Las Meninas sculpture.
Javier (Left) and Israel (2nd to the right) posed with
Spanish painter Cesar Caballero (2nd to the left) and
CFA graduate student, Steph Pallalos (rightmost).
The artist should not think of the material as a limitation because the possibilities on how to use the materials are endless, added Israel. “At the same time, we are learning from the artists here because we are using materials from here. The weather here is different. So, at the same time, we are actually learning new techniques as well. It’s an interaction. It’s an exchange,” Israel added.
Caballero, who is the project’s organizer, credited CFA Dean Florentina Colayco for the success of the collaboration. He hopes that in return, Filipino artists can go to Spain to share their artistic knowledge with the Spanish artists, and that this project will be an annual event between the two countries.
Art as their bread and butter. According to Caballero, he has been working with the two sculptors for over 10 years and considers them among the best. He also said they can efficiently and masterfully create artworks or even props using different materials, in accordance with the specifications set by the artists who commission them, in various circumstances.
Javier was the more conversational. Israel would occasionally answer questions during the interview. Most of the time, he allowed Javier to answer for both of them with the help of Steph Pallalos, a CFA graduate student who served as translator.
Both artists confessed they love their work so much that they spend even their free time doing projects like conducting art workshops for students. This is on top of their work as props designers in theaters and televisions in Spain, and projects for other companies or artists. They have worked for 10 years at the Fundación del Teatro Lirico Teatro Real in Madrid, Spain.
They are best buddies and partners sharing almost the same interests and passion but strictly maintain professional when it comes to work. This was evident in the way they created the bronze sculpture the later donated to the College. According to Javier, the artwork is based on a painting made by well-known Spanish painter, Diego Velasquez called Las Meninas and a reproduction of the sculpture made by Manolo Valdez, a well-known Spanish sculptor.
They also love to travel and grab every opportunity to do so especially when they are commissioned for projects in another country. Moreover, both artists share the same passion in music. Javier plays the percussion while Israel plays the trumpet during their free time as a form of relaxation.
The two artists considered their 10-day-visit in the Philippines more as leisure than work and had fun visiting various places in Manila, Tagaytay and Puerto Galera. They also enjoyed the warmth and hospitality of the Filipinos. Among the things they said they would surely miss were the sumptuous Filipino dishes. Israel, according to Steph, surprisingly liked bagoong while Javier loved the adobo.
