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Pasulong Recent Sculptures by Anton Quisumbing

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Pasulong by Anton Quisumbing

Anton V. Quisumbing returns to sculpture in Pasulong, a new exhibition presented by BAMBOOVILLAGE now on view at Yuchengco Museum. Officially opened on May 15, 2026 at the Main Gallery, Y Space in RCBC Plaza, the collection gathers 29 recent works created over two years. It was a period of labor, reflection, and rebuilding. The show is curated by Miguel Rosales, with exhibition design by Caramel Creative Consultancy.<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1779940543933Pasulong E Thumbnail.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:513.865px;display:block;height:auto" width="513.865"/>Anton Quisumbing transforms propellers from boats damaged by Typhoon Odette into sculptures about movement, healing, rebuilding | &quot;Pasulong&quot; exhibition photo by Jinggo Montenejo</div>From wreckage to sculptural forms At the center of Pasulong are bronze propellers recovered from boats damaged during Typhoon Odette in 2021. Quisumbing spent two years piecing together the remnants, transforming wreckage into sculptural forms that explore movement, repair, and what it means to move forward after destruction. The process also marked the artist’s return to sculptural work after a period focused on painting. <div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1779940746441Pasulong D.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:513.865px;height:auto" width="513.865"/>Anton Quisumbing returns to sculptures after a period focusing on painting | Portrait by Daniel TanWe caught up with the artist for an exclusive interview with ABS-CBN Lifestyle. For Quisumbing, the material itself immediately suggested possibility rather than abandonment. He elaborates, “Knowing these materials were bronze and I have worked with bronze before, I immediately knew and thought of ideas, possibilities on what was to become of the wasted propellers. The material carried a lot of history. We also consider the value and quality of the material, more when bronze is polished to mirror finish. We see our reflection and sometimes in a different way.”</div><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/17799513398091-AQ.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:513.865px;height:auto" width="513.865"/>&quot;Archangel,&quot; 2025, Bronze, 102 x 46 x 32 cm | Photo by Zach Aldave, courtesy of the artistRosales says he was drawn not only to the emotional weight of the works, but also to the relationship between the material and the artist’s intent. He shares, “I was interested in how Anton wanted to show beauty through materiality and meaning. The choice of a very challenging material to sculpt with and the meaning behind it were a good combination.” The weight of rebuilding Throughout the collection, the material itself becomes part of the story. Bronze, with its heaviness and resistance, mirrors the emotional and physical weight of rebuilding after loss. Yet the sculptures do not remain fixed in that heaviness. Curved surfaces, arcs, and twisting forms create a sense of motion, some resembling spiritual markers standing firmly in place, others appearing to push toward an uncertain destination. That tension is intentional for Quisumbing, who chose to preserve the scars and irregularities left behind by destruction.</div><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/17799511913462-AQ.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/> &quot;Propulsion II,&quot; 2024, Bronze, 83 x 44 x 35.5 cm | Photo by Zach Aldave, courtesy of the artistHe says, “Our stubbornness, our &#x27;never surrender, never give up&#x27; spirit! I felt the need to integrate these imperfections, bends, and chips to be part of the work and leave these features visible. It deepens the emotional connection. The reminder of that calamity would’ve been forgotten if the material were to be melted and repurposed or even recycled into a new propeller.” For Rosales, the years spent producing the works are also crucial to understanding the exhibition. “It took the artist a few years to produce the works which is a different pace from a lot of practices these days. It took a lot of thought and skill to make each work. I wanted to display each work so the viewer could see the hand of the artist in each piece and feel the movement they had in them. They each stand out but are all in conversation with each other in the show, as each also are part of the others in their original state.”</div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/lifestyle/people-culture-events/2026/5/20/hinga-idr-cecil-ravelas-designing-spaces-that-let-us-breathe-again-2327" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: HINGA: IDr. Cecil Ravelas on designing spaces that let us breathe again</a> Serendipity, healing, transformation One of the featured works, &quot;Sight,&quot; presents a distorted figure balanced on a twisting metal base. An almond-shaped eye stretches across its center, while armor-like details on one side appear to shield it from outside forces. Like many of the pieces in the exhibition, it carries both fragility and resilience at once.<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/17799509906873-AQ.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:513.865px;display:block;height:auto" width="513.865"/>“Sight,” 2024, Bronze, 63 x 40 x 22.8 cm | Photo by Zach Aldave, courtesy of the artist Quisumbing reveals, “It was serendipity that brought me to these propellers. So timely in this phase of my life. Both painting and sculpture are deeply meditative and require patience for every single step and layer. Sculpture is more physical and strenuous, often likened to heavy manual labor. If you weld too much or grind too far, that limited material becomes irrecoverable. A composition almost never works on the first try, taking it apart and rebuilding it.&quot;</div> He adds, “Healing, I believe, follows this exact path. There are no shortcuts. You cannot skip the steps of grinding, sanding, and polishing. Both the canvas and the metal show us that healing is a slow transformation. We must patiently smooth out our rough surface until we are refined and complete.”<a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/lifestyle/people-culture-events/2026/5/27/how-kat-ong-and-butchie-pena-use-light-to-explore-emotion-memory-and-stillness-in-parallel-light-2122" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: How Kat Ong and Butchie Peña use light to explore emotion and stillness in &#x27;Parallel Light&#x27;</a> New forms, new purpose, and hope Rather than presenting destruction as an endpoint, Pasulong looks at what can still be made afterward. The sculptures reflect Quisumbing’s attempt to sit with imperfection, examine the remains, and shape them into something new. The exhibition also signals a shift in his artistic direction, away from painting and toward sculpture as a more tangible form of mending and transformation.<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1779945503056Pasulong A.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/>Exhibition designer and curator, Migs Rosales; Sayoka Takemura, exhibition manager and writer; Anton Quisumbing, artist | Photo by Daniel TanRosales adds that the exhibition reflects a personal and artistic turning point for Quisumbing. “It was also a good time for Anton Quisumbing to have a show again after many years and its great that he has pushed forward and explored in a wonderful way through this new series. This is why I titled the show Pasulong; it&#x27;s both a reference to the purpose of the bronze propellers the works were carved from, their rebirth into their new forms, and also the act of the artist pushing himself forward in his practice and sharing his latest creations.”</div><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1779944001882Pasulong B.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:513.865px;display:block;height:auto" width="513.865"/>Anton Quisumbing transforms destruction into sculpture, using imperfection and wreckage as a path toward healing and renewal | &quot;Pasulong&quot; exhibit photo by Jinggo MontenejoFor Quisumbing, the message extends beyond the sculptures. He concludes, “We have the option to contribute in our own little way for a better, harmonious world. Let’s make the most of our time together by doing good and leaving something positive for the future generation. There is always hope. Never ever give up.”</div><div>Anton Quisumbing&#x27;s recent sculptures, Pasulong, is on exhibition until May 30 in the Main Gallery of the Yuchengco Museum in RCBC Plaza, Makati.</div>

Artist Anton Quisumbing together with exhibition designer and curator Miguel Rosales share the meaning behind Pasulong, offering a deeper look into the sculptures born from destruction and rebuilding.

Artist Anton Quisumbing together with exhibition designer and curator Miguel Rosales share the meaning behind Pasulong, offering a deeper look into the sculptures born from destruction and rebuilding.

A conversation with Anton Quisumbing takes us behind 'Pasulong'

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A conversation with Anton Quisumbing takes us behind 'Pasulong'

Mawi Fojas De Ocampo

Published May 28, 2026 03:08 PM PHT

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Updated May 28, 2026 03:13 PM PHT

Read More:

Pasulong 2026

Anton V Quisumbing

Miguel Rosales

Bronze Sculpture

Yuchengo Museum

Filipino Artist

Pasulong

Art Exhibit

Philippine Contemporary Art

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