Riel Hilario will present a series of new works constructed through, and moving on from his Asian Cultural Council residency grant. His occupancy in Lower Manhattan Cultural Council is from March to August 2013 after which he will continue to the second leg of the grant in Malaysia in September.

Possible Full Body Apparitions refers to the artist’s gravitation to ghosts in the sense of paranormal activities as well as a metaphor to contemporary attitudes towards object-based works and traditional craft as something anachronistic. The entire project would echo an impression of a harbor with the sculptures appearing to defend a fort. Like Gillman Barracks, the area where his studio in New York is located in is a former military camp and the installation opens a space where this parallelism can be discussed.

About the artist:

Riel Hilario (b. 1976. Ilocos Sur, Philippines) is a visual artist whose primary medium of choice is wood sculpture, with his process recovering ties to a santo-making (carving saints). At 18 years old he trained in this tradition and later graduated from the University of the Philippines with a degree in Painting and Art History.

Hilario is also an educator and curator - he has taught in the Philippine High School for the arts and he has programmed Boston and Pinto Art galleries from 2002 – 2007. Since choosing to focus on his art practice in 2009, his works and projects have been featured in Manila, Singapore, Hong Kong, Italy and London. Hilario is one of the recipients of the Thirteen Artists Award, Ateneo Art Awards and Philippine Art Awards in 2012. His successive residencies in Paris, New York and Malaysia were bestowed by Alliance Francaise de Manille and Asian Cultural Council.

Image: © Riel Hilario, The Drawing Room Contemporary Art