The artworks of persons deprived of liberty (PDL) will be featured at the Leon Gallery in Makati City from July 12 to 18 in the run-up to a special auction on July 19 at 2 p.m.
In a statement, the Bagong Buhay Group of Artists (BAGA), a community of former PDLs and individuals from marginalized sections of society united by their transformative journey through art, said the auction will feature the the winners, finalists, and entries from the First National PDL Art Competition, which was held from July to October 2024, as well as artworks by the BAGA.
The competition was participated in by more than 180 PDLs from various jails and correctional facilities across the country and spearheaded by the Justice Sector Coordinating Council.
The council is composed of the Supreme Court, Department of Justice, and Department of Interior and Local Government. The Bureau of Corrections, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology, and Sandiganbayan Associate Justice Karl Miranda also took part in the event.
“The competition and the auction aim to highlight the artistic talents of PDLs and provide a unique platform for them to showcase not only the rehabilitative power of art but also their exceptional talent and creativity,” BAGA said in a statement.
Miranda said that the Leòn Gallery, through its director Jaime Ponce de Leon, agreed to waive commissions from the auction, which means 100% of the proceeds will go to the PDL artists and their families.
“This auction is not only our way of giving back to the community, but our way of celebrating these up-and-coming talents in the hopes of giving them the chance to really flourish and thrive through their creativity,” de Leon said.
The panel of judges for the art competition was composed of Salvador Ching of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, Jualim Vela of the Department of Humanities of the University of the Philippines Los Baños, and Liping Zheng, an artist and retired senior officer of the Asian Development Bank.
“Through this activity, we hope to emphasize that incarceration is not the end-all and be-all of the Philippine justice system, but rather a step toward the rehabilitation and reintegration of PDLs into society,” said Joey De Leon, president of BAGA and former PDL.
“Through this special auction facilitated by Leon Gallery, the quality of PDL artworks will be elevated so that people will patronize them not only out of empathy for their plight but also because of their artistic quality,” he added.
De Leon founded BAGA in 2021 to assist ex-PDLs in their reintegration into mainstream society.—Llanesca Panti/LDF, GMA Integrated News
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