Marami nang naisulat tungkol kay Milagros Liwanag Jose, o mas kilala sa pangalang Maela. Kuwento niya nung siya ay nagaaral pa sa Universidad ng Pilipinas, lima daw silang neophyte na nagngangalang Milagros kayat sinabihan sila na humanap ng pangalan na akma sa kanila.
Sumali siya sa Delta Lambda Sigma Sorority dahil sa kanilang salawikain na “To seek for the greater things in life,” (para saliksikin o hanapin ang mga pinaka dakilang bagay sa buhay).
Maela talks of the numerous blessings in her life. She says that life is full of miracles just like her name Milagros. She is a nature lover, a musician, and an artist. She draws inspiration from nature. She meditates in a special nook in her house morning, noon and night and give thanks to the Almighty. Ang sarap ng buhay!
Kilalang kilala siya sa pagiging “Tinatik artist.” Ito ay salitang pinaghalo ni Maela. “Tina” galing sa kulay at “Tik” naman ay galing sa “drop” na hinango sa salitang ‘”batik”.”
I am not a Fine Arts graduate,” says Maela, “my art grew from within, from my personal ‘flow’, with all the beauty around me. I find meaning in my life based on the wonderful creations of God.”
Itong mala diyosang nilalang o binibini, ay talagang mahilig sa musika. Ito daw ang kanyang first love o unang pag-ibig, pangalawa lamang ang kanyang “tinatik art”.
Bata pa raw siya ay nagko compose na siya ng lyrics ng musika. Makakapagbigay tunay dito ang kanyang kaibigan na si Lolita Carbon,isang Filipina singer at songwriter na mas kilala sa kanyang bandang“Asin” nuong Pinoy rock movement. Nagsimula daw sila nuong 1976.
Ngunitang talagang nagbigay daan sa kanyang pagiging artist ay nang itinatag nuong 1991 ang Pampanga Arts Guild(PAG) at nagkaroon sila ng “Artruption”- proyekto ni Maela bilang president ng PAG. Itinanghal ito saCultural Center of the Philippines at sa National Commission for Culture and the Arts.
Dito nag eksibit sila ng mga art works na gawa sa buhangin, bato at pebbles. Mga bagay na hango sa pagputok Mt. PinatuboAt dito na rin nagsimula at kanyang pagpinta ng mga malalaking tents na naglalarawang ng mga simbolo ng katutubo.At naipanganak na nga ang kanyang “tinatik art”.
Wari ko kagaya ng mga obra nang ibang mga pintor at artists, ang kanilang trabaho ay mayroong kanya kanya kahulugan at kaluluwa na ibig ipahiwatig na ito sa kaibuturan ng kanilang puso.
Mahirap man maintindihan nang ibang tumitingin itong ang kahulugan ng mga obrang, ito ay hindi dapat husgahan sapagkat malalim ang pinanggagalingan ng kanilang ideya. Dito nagsasanib ang kanilang pagiisip at puso.
Paano nga ba maipapaliwanag ang kahulugan, diwa at kaluluwa ng kanilang obra?. Kayat wala tayong kakayahan na husgahan, dadapuwat kailangan nating hangaan lamang at intindihin ang kanilang mga obra.
Maela once painted her first creative Christmas tree on the onset of Baguio as a Creative City in October 2017. It was inaugurated in December of that year, but was short lived as people did not understand what a big tent painted with native symbols was doing at the top of Session Road. It was supposed to symbolize the birth of creative art.
“I paint big tents as a symbol of protection, as a shade and shelter for people. It is meant to nourish souls , “explains Maela. She paints the Cordillera traditional symbols to make us aware of our heritage and culture.
Her exhibit “As Above, So Below” tinatik art (Tulad ng sa Itaas, Kagaya ng sa Ibaba) which opened last Friday at the Baguio Museum is a 95 feet by 48 inches unbroken canvass that gives us a purview of the beauty of the universe, its colors and its continuum.
It is different from her tent concepts. The beauty of the universe should not only be in the heavens but also on earth.
Her beautiful models, namely: Jenelyn Daguisan, Kyra Pagalilauan, Zhean Angelada, Elyssa Feliciano, Yvonne Dumsang, Rolyn Gabis, Abby Dayao using their hand symbols made us focus on the colors they represent. Perhaps, when Maela has enough time, she can make her art move. This is called “kinetic art”.
This form of art will alter dramatically our notion of painting, especially tinatik art. Everything is in motion in life, hence the need to express art in kinetic form to remind us that we should not remain static.
“Kinetic art is derived from the Greek word “kinesis”, meaning “movement”. For theher future exhibits, Maela will use kinetic art to move her vivid colors and make them undulate and explode with motion and keep us fascinated. The three dimensional art is timely with the arrival of the Baguio Museum holograms.
Maela is determined to make kinetic art boom. As she jokingly says, even the electric fan will be part of her exhibit in the future, if need be. (Photos by Nash de Guia) – Stella Maria L. de Guia
