When I visited Paola Germar’s art exhibit last March, entitled “Pay Per Doll”, I
had flashbacks of one of Disney’s 1929 classic animated shorts “The Skeleton
Dance” and the artistic genre Dance of Death,
also called Danse Macabre. Her work is, to me, is a contemporary
art manifestation of the universality of death. The Dance of Death
unites all. Much like the medieval art
movement, “The Danse Macabre”,
“Pay Per Doll” consists of the personification of the dead, a cold dose
of reality that we all will someday dance to the closing symphony of life.
Works such as these were created to remind us of
the fragility of life. As a member of a clan that traditionally became doctors,
Paola was probably exposed to this stark reality at a very young age. However,
in contrast to the usual dark and somber colors used by past artists in their
depiction of the final dance, Paola attacks the genre with a bright palette of
colors. Another feature of Paola’s exhibit is that viewers can interact with
her creations by dressing up the skeletons with various articles of “clothing”.
Today, the life expectancy of the average human
being far exceeds our counterparts’ from four hundred years ago. The hash tag
#yolo, “You Only Live Once” is a powerful four word statement. We, as a
society, have come to the point where we know for a fact, and have come to
accept, that death will come for us at any time.
As historians put it, we now live in an age of cynicism “Modern” society has existed for more about 2000 years, but it is only
in the 1980’s, more specifically during the cold war, that we have attained the
ability to destroy all of humanity through weapons of mass destruction.
Literally, we can end it all anytime we want.
So what matters most in life is not to look
forward to the final chapter, it is to enjoy the ride while we are here to
enjoy it. As we should view it, the dance of the dead has been inverted to
become the dance of life. We all know the inevitable. We all know what comes at
the end. Why not enjoy the ride in an explosion of color, laughter, and
happiness while we can?
"Pay Per Doll"
A Solo Exhibition by Paola Germar
March 2015
A pleasing sight for the eyes of many whose interest is focused on the brandished appearance of females, and these prying eyes are hypocritical in a sense that they feast on fanciful costumes that are made up to tease the senses. Stitched up sequins and cinched up waists provide much space for imagination.
The degradation of a woman in society has created a new value on herself as a person. This self-imposed object only doubles in value when she flashes any patch of skin.
The skin of women is paper thin. It is carefully crafted and cut into whatever shape it needs to be. Artificial, attractive, and altruistic, everything a woman may be. Both prim and proper yet sexy and spirited, a double standard that keeps women self-destructive.
The glitz or glamour masks a woman's identity with flashing lights and glowing faces. This is the innocence of a woman covered by money and desire.
Manila Bulletin Feature
Keeping it real.- PJV
