Artist

Norberto Roldan

Born in Roxas City, 1953 and lives in Manila

Norberto Roldan’s work offers a commentary on the social, political, and cultural conditions of the Philippines via assemblages of object, text, and image.
He earned a BA in Philosophy from St. Pius X Seminary, Roxas City; a BFA in Visual Communications from University of Santo Tomas, Manila; and an MA in Art Studies at University of the Philippines, Diliman.
In 1986, he founded Black Artists in Asia, a Philippines-based group focused on socially and politically progressive practice. In 1990, he initiated the biennial VIVA EXCON (Visayas Islands Visual Arts Exhibition and Conference). Roldan was a finalist for the Philip Morris Philippines Art Award, Manila, in 1996, 1997, and 1999. In 1998, he was awarded Juror’s Choice for the same award as well for the Art Association of the Philippines Annual Art Competition. Roldan is the current artistic director of Green Papaya Art Projects (est. 2000), an independent, artist-run initiative and alternative art space that supports collaboration and exchange between Asia-Pacific and Filipino artists. Citing the influence of Joseph Cornell and Santiago Bose, Roldan juxtaposes objects, images, and textual fragments as a means to reject the idea of historical certainty and propose new social, political, and cultural narratives in its place.
Often employing the material embodiments of various genres and themes in a single collage, Roldan harnesses poignant aspects of shared and personal biography. His assemblage In Search For Lost Time 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 (2010) has its origins in an article on Hitler’s Berlin apartment. Based on a conviction that the interior and furnishings of the dictator’s home offer no insight into the true nature of the man, the work questions the importance of material culture in the study of anthropology. Each work is a collection of curios, old perfumes bottles, compact cases, amulets, and old photographs displayed in wood and glass cabinets, recalling a past that is fabricated by an attempt to create a sense of order from forgotten memories. Focusing on Baudrillard’s criticism of Marxist ideology as misguided fantasy, Roldan’s series itself presents no political judgment or conclusion, but seeks instead to simply pit history against reality.

Exhibitions
Exhibitions
Nasi Campur International
Taksu Singapore is proud to present ‘Nasi Campur International’, a group exhibition by Andre Mendez...
14 Jan 2016 - 07 Feb 2016
Taksu Singapore
Singapore
Exhibitions
WASAK! Reloaded
WASAK! Reloaded is a group exhibition exploring the Filipino contemporary art landscape and is accompanied...
27 Aug 2016 - 10 Oct 2016
Singapore
Exhibitions
A Beast, a God, and a Line
“A Beast, a God, and a Line” curated by Cosmin Costinas features over 50 artists from South...
16 Mar 2018 - 20 May 2018
Para Site
Hong Kong
Exhibitions
The Sun Teaches Us That History Is Not Everything
Initiated by the Osage Art Foundation and curated by Brazilian curator Raphael Fonseca, “The Sun Teaches...
26 Mar 2018 - 06 May 2018
Osage Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Exhibitions
Unfolding: Fabric of Our Life
“Unfolding: Fabric of Our Life” brings together works and performances by 17 contemporary...
17 Mar 2019 - 30 Jun 2019
CHAT – Centre for Heritage, Arts and Textile
Hong Kong
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