Lilianna Manahan’s Notes to Self made me realize the importance of having visual literacy and the skill to engage with and comprehend the language of visual expression.
In this visually-driven world we are all immersed in, it’s a skill essential not only for artists and art enthusiasts but also for anyone seeking a deeper understanding of the messages and emotions conveyed through visual media.
The art works in this show are non-verbal forms of communication that utilize visual components to engage and connect with the viewer on a deeper level.
Lilianna uses all aspects of visual language in her artmaking: color, lines, shapes, scale, texture, proportion and symbolism.
When you explore the nature of materials as thoroughly as she has—controlling and freeing shapes, colors, and patterns—you gain a deeper understanding of possibilities which provide the bedrock of visual literacy. Over the years, she has effectively combined these visual- graphic elements into an expressive non-verbal arrangement and in doing so, developed her own visual language, expressing it in mixed media: paper, gouache, oil pastel, metal and gold leaf.
‘clarence’
Notes to Self is a spinoff of her exhibit last February 2023 called Snapshoot, where she showed her sculpted paper for the first time. They were little snippets of emotions and moments frozen in time, as little visual reminders of turning points and different moments good and bad that all came together to make a meaningful and stimulating life.
In an interview with TheDiarist.ph, she said, “All the forms I’ve been using are iterations of the basic visual language I made. So Notes to Self is a continuation of me exploring all these ideas and processes.
“Notes to Self focuses more on short words of encouragement that I’ve given or received from people or have had to tell myself. I wanted to express each work as one note. I looked at my workspace and realized that I stick a lot of notes to remind me of certain things, so this is where I got the concept from. I know sometimes these short but sweet nuggets of encouragement either put you in place or most of the time, give you a second, third even fourth wind to continue with the daily obstacles and nuances of life. I see these pieces as logos that hopefully push someone forward.”
‘do the next thing’
‘it takes time’
‘it’s ok’
‘the spring to someones smile’
‘today was good’
‘Youer than you’
“Do the Next Thing: from a missionary’s wife (Elisabet Elliot) who had huge tasks ahead of her, she was reminded of an Anglo Saxon poem entitled Do the Next Thing Be Brave for this Day: There are some days where you just don’t want to leave the room because leaving means time will go 200% faster and more things will pile up. I thought that being brave for a long period of time was a little overwhelming and unattainable, so being brave just for the day, and repeating it the next and the next was more doable and encouraging.
‘whistle while you work’
‘phone home’
‘brave for this day’
‘be the sun when there is none’
‘wonder and think’
‘think and wonder’
‘theres something new’
‘glimmers in dust’
‘eyes to the sky never glued to your shoes’
It’s Okay: a play on saying that things are okay, or accepting an apology and hearing those two assuring words. ”
Paper is a medium Lilianna continues to explore for her visual note-taking. Along with creating 2D and 3D paper sculpture, she translates personal interests, memories, and stories in her work, thus effectively transforming a flat piece of paper into a 3D sculpture by folding, cutting, curling, twisting and crumpling parts of a sheet and using those exact pieces to form detailed shapes. With each twist and turn of her hand she discovers a new reaction from paper.
“I used different kinds of paper in each composition to add texture and color even if half of the work is all in white or neutral. A lot of it has to do with the training I had in my foundation year in London where we were made to think in 3D and sculpt paper and maquettes which I enjoyed so much. All of these works I realized have an element of knowing that past a mundane/bad situation, there is something to look forward to even if the process of getting there is unpleasant.”
Notes to Self also showcases Lilianna’s proficiency with other techniques; using digital elements and combining them with a medieval craft like hand gilding and hand drawing in pen and ink. These series of prints introduce us to Clarence, an inventive birdlike figure that came to life on her drawing board during the lockdowns. Clarence makes an appearance, bringing light during dim and difficult times, or inspiring curious, hysterically funny situations.
Lilianna is a storyteller exploring various aspects of her identity and experiences in a creative and engaging way.
“I did Clarence over the lockdowns and wanted to experiment with the concept of a comic book taking reference from Japanese prints.
“I was always drawing this same figure of a birdlike creature, an extinct cousin of the dodo bird from an imaginary pocket in my brain. I grew up with a lot of Dr Seuss and I guess his philosophies and images stuck in my mind, so when I wouldn’t have much to draw, this would come out. During the lockdowns I did not want to keep my brain from going stale so I started drawing something every day. I realized it only this year that Clarence took a more solid form when I started putting him in situations in between the mundane and near death, but for some reason he would always come out with a new learning, and live to tell the tale. He took on everyday postures that I would see myself doing or could have done in the past. Some of these come from everyday exercise, or things that I wish I could do in public to dodge germs, postures that are silly but somehow allow me to keep calm. I’m not good with words, but I guess especially during the lockdowns, whatever I wanted to say or do between the point of keeping it together and cracking, all got poured out in the running series of Clarence.”
And what an air of enchantment this series of prints have brought to Manila House’s space! They are intuitive and emotionally resonant, combined with a sense of humor orginating from different life situations. Silly, clever and absurd, Clarence embodies universal ideals : goodness, courage, friendship, and freedom. The bird somehow always rises above desperate situations, always manifesting a solution. Though they have this whimsical air about them, the prints have compositional elegance.
I’ve said this about Lilianna’s earlier body of work, and I’ll say it again.
Clearly, her solid and grounded understanding of the elements of design, from line to form, shape, color, and texture, is the reason she is able to communicate her visual messages clearly. This too shows in the refreshing spontaneity of her works, nothing is overworked. Central to all her artmaking is an attention to process, detail, and a respect for fine crafting and the handmade.
All this has resulted in a showcase of bright and virtuoso pieces that respect the process of creation and show her incredible talent.
Notes To Self is on view at Manila House, BGC, until Nov. 30, 2023.
