Pintados: Portraits of Immigrants as Ancestors, Solo Exhibition by Jevijoe Vitug
Gallery hours:
Noon – 6pm, July 5th – 9th

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Opening Reception Programming
– A flag raising ceremony addressing decolonization, immigration and human rights, part of the series Air Rights, curated by Christina Freeman

-A one-night only performance titled “We are still in Cages but We will Entertain you!,” a multi-genre project by Jevijoe Vitug in collaboration with New York based Filipinx electronic rock duo, Turbo Goth.
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This exhibition presents a new body of work by Philippine-born, New York based artist Jevijoe Vitug. His paintings portray immigrants from the Philippines, reinventing themselves as indigenous ancestors of Southeast Asia also known as Austronesian people. Pintados, meaning “the painted ones,” was a term used by Spanish colonists to describe indigenous Austronesians with tattooed bodies, common before the European colonization of Southeast Asia.

The artist is absorbed with the concept of “pintados” as both indigenous mark making and a painting technique similar to cross-hatching, in which marking an area with two or more intersecting series of lines create tones and values.

Being a first generation immigrant in the US, and separated from his family and immediate relatives, the artist paints portraits of his migrant friends who mostly live and work in New York City, with whom he finds comfort in a shared experience and struggle. Wearing urban clothing, layered with indigenous designs, the portraits mirror indigenous stances found in photographic images of Austronesians. The artist reclaims historical images by proposing a possible future. the images no longer bound by a particular time and place.

Vitug’s exhibition also includes one history painting entitled “Filipinx at Dreamland” refering to the indigenous ancestors that were taken from hte Philippines and caged in a “human zoo” at Coney Island in the early 20^th century.

This is second solo show by Jevijoe Vitug at Flux Factory. Vitug studied at St. Scholastica’s College, Philippines (BFA 1998) and San Francisco Art Institute, USA (MFA 2015). In 2018 his work is included in various exhibitions, including the Flux Factory Residency at ARoS Aarhus Kunstmuseum, Denmark; S.T.E.P. curated by Christina Freeman, Moira Williams and Emireth Herrera at the Queens Museum, NY. Vitug is also part of a collaborative duo with Maureen Catbagan called “The Abangguard” whose work explores themes of immigration, labor and visibility within art institutions.

Turbo Goth is a NYC based, electronic rock duo from the Philippines. Formed in 2008 by Sarah Gaugler (on lead vocals) and Paolo Peralta (on guitar/electronic sampler), Turbo Goth has had numerous performances in numerous venues all over the Philippines and performed at a handful of Music Festivals in Asia. After Turbo Goth’s performance atSouth by Southwest in 2014, they decided to relocate, to apprehend a broader audience, finding a new home in New York by the end of that year.