The Beyond the
Barrelman exhibition is a collaborative effort
by three Filipino-American not-for-profit
organizations:
From the
moment we began planning in 2004 for our first
exhibition, our overriding mission was to create
an event that would shine a spotlight on the
creative talent of Filipinos, both in the U.S.
and abroad. The resulting collection surpassed
our expectations, as did the turnout by
supportive Filipino Americans from throughout
our community.
Our original
mission still drives us today. The Beyond the
Barrelman exhibition should always be about the
artists and their works. Through this
exhibition, we seek to celebrate and support
Filipino artists from throughout the U.S.,
Canada, the Philippines and everywhere in
between.
So how did we
arrive at that name?
Most Filipinos recognize
the ubiquitous "barrelman" figure.
As we
struggled in the beginning to come up with a
name for this project, one of the recurring
themes that arose was the challenge to overcome
certain stereotypes -- even within our own
Filipino American community -- about what
constitutes contemporary Filipino art. Contrary
to many people's beliefs, our creativity and
craftsmanship went beyond oversized carved wooden
spoons, seashell vases and holiday parols --
"beyond the Barrelman."
It was a catchy
title, and, more importantly, it caught the
spirit of our secondary goal: increasing
awareness within our communities of how far
Filipinos have come in the arts.
Volunteer-Driven
It took
a dedicated group of volunteers and sponsors to
make the original project a success, and that's
still true today. We can use any help
you can provide
And it's never too late to
lend a hand or
make a donation.
Please join us
this September 2008 in making the 2nd Beyond the
Barrelman Exhibition a similar success.
Beyond the
Barrelman
An Exhibit of Contemporary Filipino Art
September 2008
Mercury Cafe Gallery
1505 W. Chicago
Chicago, IL
info@BeyondTheBarrelman.com
Mailing
Address
Beyond The
Barrelman
c/o The Filipino American Network
516 N. Ogden #151
Chicago, IL 60622
