Fashion meets visual arts in this silent auction
“Masterpieces in Motion,” a fashion show-cum-silent auction held last Sunday at Salcedo Auctions in Makati City, broke new ground for its major players.
It was renowned fashion designer Michael Cinco’s first time to collaborate with a visual artist. It was Davao City’s homegrown talent Caroline “Bing” Taojo’s debut in Metro Manila’s art scene. It was Salcedo Auctions’ initial foray into something that melds visual arts and fashion.
“The idea was brought to us by different people,” Salcedo Auctions chairperson and chief specialist Richie Lerma told Lifestyle at the event. “One thing that people don’t realize is that an auction house is really a confluence of people from various segments, such as visual arts, fashion.”
He went on recalling how his conversations with public relations maven Keren Pascual led him to meeting Cinco for the first time. Pascual, in turn, met Taojo through an associate and then went on to produce “Masterpieces in Motion.”
Taojo recalled to us, also at the event, her reaction when she got a call a few months ago from Pascual’s team offering her to collaborate with Cinco: “I couldn’t believe it! I told them I’m shy. I’m a mother, I’m a grandmother. I just do this as a hobby.”
The artist, who’s an optometrist by profession, said she had her first solo show in Davao early this year after participating in several group exhibits in the past. She admitted being intimidated by the prospect of showcasing her artworks in Metro Manila, where there’s an abundance of “good artists.” But she eventually saw the wisdom in the event producer’s offer and agreed to take on the challenge.
Sometime in September, Taojo had a video call with Cinco, who’s based in Dubai. They clicked, and since then, Taojo said Cinco would send her sketches of dresses inspired by her artworks. She, on the other hand, was tasked to paint on four Cinco creations, two of which were then displayed at the lobby of Salcedo Auctions during the event.
On Dec. 6, two days before the show, Taojo finally met Cinco in person, and her disbelief turned into certainty as the celebrated fashion designer brought all 13 new works, including two that are direct interpretations of her paintings “Believe in the Heart” and “Flower Dance.”
Famous collaborations
“Masterpieces in Motion” opened with an introduction from Paul Martineau, a curator of photography at J. Paul Getty Museum who flew into the country from the institution’s headquarters in Los Angeles, California. He spoke on famous art and fashion collaborations, beginning with Salvador Dali’s Surrealist object, “Lobster Telephone,” (1936) that inspired Elsa Schiaparelli’s lobster dress made of silk organza (1937).
Then there’s Andy Warhol’s “Campbell’s Soup Cans, Tomato” acrylic on canvas (1962). It initially earned the ire of the company behind the soup brand but eventually became the basis for the paper dress that the same company used for promotions.
Another example is Marcel Duchamp’s “Nude Descending a Staircase” oil on canvas (1912) as the inspiration for Paco Rabanne’s “Donyale Luna” gown that Richard Avedon immortalized in one of his definitive photographs. The same goes for Piet Mondrian’s “Composition No. 11 in Red, Blue, and Yellow” oil in canvas (1930) inspiring Yves Saint Laurent’s Mondrian dress, as it appeared on the cover of Vogue magazine in 1966.
Martineau concluded his talk by pointing out the same creative brilliance shown in Cinco’s interpretation of Taojo’s “Believe in the Heart.”
The artist herself felt her artworks came to life during the fashion show. She later told us of Cinco, “He exceeded my expectations. He really captured the soul of my paintings.”
When asked what the collaboration meant for her, the artist said it’s “more than a dream come true” and her “greatest achievement” so far. It also got her excited to work on a new collection and share her realization that “it’s never too late to pursue your passion.”
Cinco was similarly upbeat at the culmination of his collaborative work with Taojo that took him three months to finish. “Yes, it’s magic,” he said, concurring with our observation. He added that his love for flowers drew him to Taojo’s artworks, which have a predominantly floral theme. He also said he’s open to more collaborations in the future.
Lerma said he’s looking into mounting similar projects. He said, “I’m getting inquiries to do more of this because everybody was moved.”
