Bienvenido "Bones" Banez Jr.

Art Review

Mindanaoan Artist in Lexicon of Surrealism

By Phillip Somozo

At a time when Manila is rocked by controversies surrounding the questionable declaration of some personalities as National Artists, a Davao-born art talent quietly carved a niche among history’s greatest surrealists. His stuttering childlike speech, incompatible with his towering 6-foot height, sometimes amuses people. But today, Bienvenido Banez, Jr., towers all the more for achievements uncommon among Filipino artists.

Diagnosed with mild learning disability during childhood, Ben’s focus of attention has always been his art. Rightly so. In 2002, he won first place in the Asian Fellowship Painting Competition of the prestigious Vermont Studio Center launched from Vermont, USA. Last year, in New York City, where he based himself after his Vermont fellowship, he was the only Filipino among the more than seventy international, surreal visual artists featured in the grandest-ever birth anniversary celebration of John Milton and what is considered as the greatest English poem, his Paradise Lost (see photo).

Earlier, in 2004, the president and executive director of Williamsburg Art & Historical Center in Brooklyn, NYC, while viewing Ben’s painting, commented to a fashion photographer that Banez is the “greatest living surrealist from the Philippines.” This comment from contemporary Surrealism’s prime mover, Terrance Lindall, himself the organizer of Milton’s biggest birthday bash, may have been trivially said. But today it is qualified by another achievement in Banez’s career: his name, profile, and sample work recently are published in a German edition of "The International Encyclopedia of Fantastic, Surrealist, Symbolist, & Visionary Artists" or Lexikon Surreal for short. Thus, Bienvenido Bones Banez, again the only Filipino in the inventory, now appears along with Surrealism greats such as Salvador Dali, Andre Breton, Kris Kuksi, Francisco Goya, William Blake, Frida Khalo, Frank Frazetta, Pablo Picasso, Ernst Fuchs, Keith Wigdor, and Jon Beinart to name a few, in the same book.

In page 35 of Lexikon Surreal, Banez’s work, “666 Screaming,” appears in full color (photo); while in page 44 his profile is printed in German. Translated into English, it reads:

            BANEZ JR. BIENVENIDO BONES

(Davao City, Mindanao, Philippines, 1962- ) Filipino visionary, male, lives and works in the USA. Studied in the Ford Academy of the Arts in Davao City, Island of Mindanao; associate professor in the Philippine Women’s College-Davao. 2002 winner in the Asian Fellowship Painting Competition of the Vermont Studio Center, Vermont, USA., and has lived since in the USA.  

If greatness also means winning an international art fellowship, the admiration of a globally-distinguished artist organizer, and being genus among a roster of historical figures and international achievers, then, this Mindanaoan artist has at least cut himself a slice of the surreal pie. 

Banez’s art is expression of belief in Evil gaining dominion over the Earth. Injustice, inequity, conflicts, wars, environmental destruction, and human suffering—all these, manifestations of the rule of Evil—a perception old as Judaeo-Christian doomsday prophets and feasted upon by the human mind ancient to modern.

What makes Banez a paradox among surrealists is his depiction of hellish conditions not as murky depths, but psychedelic sceneries where spectra of colors enthrall viewers. Figures—human, geometric or biomorphic curiosities—lose tactility and become translucent images and luminosities swirling, shimmering, or disintegrating in a world bereft of gravity.

Marvelous colors, resembling jewelry and precious stones, at closer look turn out to be viral, cellular infections, acid-chemical concentrates, or spreading volcanic lava, eating up human figures, corrupting techno systems, and contaminating the cosmos—the artist’s vision of bio-chemical warfare, pandemics, and natural catastrophe combined to destroy the Establishment. Neonlike brushstrokes snake through his canvases—flowing traffic that entangle on physical perversions and gets jammed on a plexus of human agony nestled on infernal flame.

Esthetically mesmerizing the colors are in a Banez canvas, the portrayed perversion and misery of humankind are as morbid and offensive to good taste. Apparently, the artist captures the viewer with chromatic wonder; then, in succeeding moments, pounces on his cognitive faculties with horrors of the wages of sin. This visual irony fits well with Surrealism as originally defined by spokesperson Andre Breton: Beauty must be convulsive, or nothing! This context, Banez earned his ticket to the theater of the absurd where Hieronymus Bosch and company once sat and dreamed.

It is notable that Banez, despite his psychedelic colors, is no drug abuser. His recent works indicate he evolved from common representational surrealism into surreal abstraction, his figures and images losing physical and material volume, reduced to astral constituency, something only the very rare eye of contemplation could see.

Achieving surrealism by abstraction is not common turf of surrealists down history. This is what Banez should look forward to and discover the other half of man’s nature created not to languish in murky infernal depths. It does not set him apart from his fellow Filipinos but pulls them up as artists universal as any other race.

Lexikon Surreal is authored by Gerhard Habarta. Measuring 9 x 6.75 inches, it is printed hardcover, with ribbon. It contains 1,122 artist biographies from 69 countries in 464 pages, with 950 black and white and 458 color reproductions. 
For more information visit www.lexikon-surreal.com or Google Search lexikon der phantastischen kunstler/banez jr. bienvenido bones.

Biography

Bienvenido "Bones" Banez Jr. is a Bachelor of Fine Arts at the Ford Academy of the Arts in Davao City. For some time he served as associate professor at the Ford Academy and the Philippine Women's College-Davao. In 2002 he won the Asian Fellowship Painting Competition of the Vermont Studio Center, Vermont, USA, and had since based himself in the US. Last year he was the lone Filipino who qualified to the world's largest-ever surrealist exhibition held in WAH Center, Brooklyn, New York. Entitled "Brave Destiny," the juried show was organized by Terrance Lindall himself and gathered 500 surrealists from all over the globe. Brave Destiny was opened to the public with a grand, royal, surrealist costume ball with the Prince of Denmark as one of the special guests. Ben has been in Northern California where he works as art teacher for autistic children. Now, he is widening his horizons in New York, USA.

Philosophy

666 Artworld the GOLDEN BLASPHEMY

Why be interested in 666 art world?

Regardless of where you live ,you have no doubt seen for yourself how 666 art world affect the lives of 6-billions of people. For thousands of years mankind has had a spiritual need and yearning.Most people lived with his trial and burden, his doubt and question ,including the mystery of 666 man's number.On the other hand ,there are billions of people who profess no religion nor any belief in god. Some are atheist,agnostic and they believe God is unknown and unknowable.

But we are talking about a special kind of knowledges that is for greater than 666 human wisdom. If you found certain parts of the document hard to understand,and let us examine the book reveals the knowledge of God. How do we find happiness through the book of revelation?We do so by searching out the meaning of its vivid sign,or symbols and acting in harmony there with.

Logically, question come to our mind. From where did all these 666 art world come? Did they start independently,or could they developed from one source? The answer to these question are of vital important to all who are interested in finding the truth about 666 art world.

HERE IS WHERE WISDOM COMES IN: LET THE ONE THAT HAS INTELLIGENCE CALCULATE THE NUMBER OF THE WILD BEAST, FOR IT IS A MAN'S NUMBER , AND ITS NUMBER IS 666.ACCORDING TO REVELATION 13:18

A name identified a person of the worldly system.So how does this number identify the beast? John says that it "is a man's number" not that of a spirit person or demons so the names help to confirm the wild beast is Earthly ,symbolizing human rulers this worldly system they are political artist,religions as an artists,and business as an artists too they can manipulate the people of the world of visible art. Just as six fails to measure up to seven, so 666 is a degree- is a fitting name for the world gigantic political system that fails so miserably to measure up to God's standard of perfection. Therefore we are living of the 666 art world!!! And those who loves the worldly desire of the flesh and desire of the eyes and the showy display of ones means of life its a 666 art world!!! Hence, it reflects human failing resulting from sin and imperfection its very interesting for the artists to inspired us. And these are very interesting the matters of MAN's WISDOM is 666 into a Mystic various way of seeing of our artists are universal movement like : Egyptian artwork,Assyrian artwork, Babylon artwork,Medo-Persia artwork,Greek artwork,Roman artwork, Asean artwork and these presents days as Modern Art World its a universal movement they are very interesting. The 666 arts movement are the expression of various style of our interpretaion, rendition style, and multiplicity culture in these presence world of art. The elements of the 666 artworld are visible line in life,visible colors in life,visible form in life,visible space in life,visible texture in life,visible volume in life,visible value in life,and musics in life too,and also unseen form in the universe. And our whole world wisdom are the making 666 art movement in subconscious way that they dont know the disobedient spirit or fallen angel were inspired our genetic imperfection and our numbers represent 666 art activities. And i believed we are offspring in human imperfection as an artistically in sinner way of life as an human imperfection.

Kulay-Diwa  is a venue for Philippines and Southeast Asian Contemporary Art. Inaugurated on February 7, 1987, Kulay-Diwa, is strategically located within a cluster of communities South of Manila.  It has five independent exhibition areas able to accommodate large-scale works and a garden ideal for programs, performances and sculpture installations.  The goal of the gallery is to discover and promote the works of young, talented but deserving Filipino Artists and to foster cultural interaction and exchanges with the local regions and other countries.

Kulay (Colour)

Diwa  (Spirit, Thought)

 The images below are examples of the artist’s work and are not necessarily available. However, if you are interested in any of the artist’s artworks, please let us know through our feedback form and we will get in touch with you as soon as some are available.

Available works: 

INQUIRE

HOME