Biracial artist Rook Floro's latest exhibition "Alpha/Omega: The One Between Fire And Water" is a personal reflection of his mixed heritage and search for the meaning of life.
The solo art exhibition, which the Filipino/Thai describes as a prologue to the learning curve he went through in search of his identity, is on display at WTF gallery from today until Dec 20.
Explaining the title of his exhibition, Rook said that Alpha and Omega are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet and thus represent the beginning and end.
Art pieces from 'Alpha/Omega: The One Between Fire And Water'. (Photo: Preecha Pattara)
"Like fire and water, they represent opposing forces -- ferocious and tranquil yet when acting together, they become the source of life and death."
The 33-year-old Rook used four alter egos to represent his wide range of identities as a person of mixed heritage. This served as his inspiration to unleash artistic creativity. Among the four works, he says the most personal and intimate is Alpha/Omega, which acts as the foundation of who he is and allows him to tell his story.
Born to a Filipino father and Thai mother, he was 25 when he first visited the Philippines. He found the experience enchanting and went through things he found familiar and unfamiliar.
Perplexed and fascinated by his first trip to the Philippines, the artist began to question the idea of his own identity.
The first question to hit him was: "How would I have turned out if I grew up in the Philippines instead of Thailand?"
The encounter led to the development of strong emotions within him about his identity and he stored away his thoughts for later rumination. Aspects from this initial question are on display in this exhibition in which he has turned complex thoughts into visual and physical form which have allowed him to express his feelings.
"This exhibition has been in the works for four years, which is when I first visited the Philippines for my grandma's birthday which was being celebrated in a church. Afterwards, I came back to Thailand for my grandpa's funeral in a temple. It's about my upbringing by my parents who came from different cultures with contrasting ideologies. It's a puzzling and personal feeling that I've been trying to solve by communicating through art. The heart of the exhibition is the video work which has gone through many stages of development as I searched for ways to make it the best it could be. I have created different alter egos to represent different sides of me through my art but this is one aspect I haven't shared before," Rook remarked.
Art pieces from 'Alpha/Omega: The One Between Fire And Water'. (Photo: Preecha Pattara)
"I don't really have a mentor as I take inspiration from everything, not just in art but in life as well. Most of the time I'm just trying to understand myself through making art.
"My father moved here in his 20s. Both he and my mother worked in advertising and I also work in the same line to support myself financially as I pursue my passion for art. I also have a sister who is five years younger than me."
Rook studied multimedia for his Bachelor's Degree (2010) at Silpakorn University and did his Master's Degree in Fine Art at the Birmingham School of Art (2011) in the UK.
Currently, he is attempting to balance his life between fine art and working in advertising.
For more information, contact Nim Niyomsin at 095-820-5995 or email nimniyomsin@gmail.com.
