Photography, sculpture, media-based works and more in Ateneo Art Gallery’s new "Recent Acquisitions"

The Ateneo Art Gallery (AAG) continues to benefit from the generosity of donors, including artists and benefactors until today. Recent Acquisitions remains to be a space dedicated to present works donated in recent years, broadening the representation of contemporary and emerging art practices in the permanent collection. The exhibit reopens on 19 February 2025 at the UGF Ernesto & Susan Tanmantiong Gallery, Ateneo Art Gallery.

The new iteration of Recent Acquisitions presents works donated by artists Agnes Arellano, Duddley Diaz, and Soler Santos and other donors namely Dr Leovino Ma Garcia, Deborah Anne N Tan, Olivia Borlongan Yao, The Cervini Choys, and the Juan and Isabel Zapanta Foundation. Featured works include pieces by Arellano, Diaz, and Santos, as well as pieces by Noel Cuizon, Jaime de Guzman, Lao Lianben, Vincent Ramos and MM Yu. Expanding the museum collection, recent acquisitions have been directed towards broadening representation in the fields of sculpture, photography, printmaking, and media-based works. To explore contemporary issues through the collection, the museum ensures its relevance to the present.

Recent Acquisitions also include a group of works from Ateneo Alumni Michelangelo and Lourdes Samson that focus on Surrounded by Water (SBW), an alternative art space that originally emerged in Angono, Rizal, initiated by Wire Tuazon in 1998. Until 2006 and in different sites in the city, SBW evolved into a collective of artists that pursued experimental art projects and a more critical art practice. With support from patrons such as the Samsons, artist-run spaces like SWB encouraged a generation of artists to challenge conventions in artmaking and the prevailing systems of the art market.

Upon confirming the Samsons’ intent to donate to Ateneo de Manila University, they eventually completed their collection of SBW artists by acquiring recent works. This section of Recent Acquisitions entitled “Revisiting Surrounded by Water” will feature works from Wire Tuazon, Keiye Miranda, Geraldine Javier, Yasmin Sison Ching, Mariano Ching, Jonathan Ching, Lena Cobangbang, Jayson Oliveria, Michael Muñoz, Argie Bandoy, Christina Dy, Lyra Garcellano, and Vic Balanon.