Unsa’y Imohang Gibati?
Des Pirinsesa
With the COVID-19 pandemic wreaking havoc, our daily activities have significantly changed and more lives have been taken, thus inducing fear, anxiety, and uncertainty, especially in populations that are heavily infected. One year into the pandemic, the situation remains bleak because of the careless, those who do not cooperate. The feeling of loneliness, grief, depression, longing, and even exhaustion is more prevalent than ever.
These feelings become stronger every waking moment. My sanity slowly abandons my likeliness as a human and leaves me as an empty shell, trying to survive every day. I remain still, but a messy and godforsaken ruin, even as the outside world continues to move forward.
These feelings thrive. Loneliness. Grief. Depression. Exhaustion. Do you feel them, too? Add Frustration because we seem to not have improved. These uncooperative beings, should they ever ask me how I am, what I have been feeling, unsa'y imohang gibati?, I want to drag them into this desolate place.
Words by Des Pirinsesa, 2021
Photos and video by Mayumi Maghuyop
The Artist in Her Own Words
DES PIRINSESA
Des Pirinsesa is a Dumaguete City-based artist who has been pursuing knowledge of different art styles and forms while honing her skills in fine arts. She is currently a Fine Arts student at Silliman University, Negros Oriental. She was born and raised in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; a city that is thriving in its art scene that in addition is a melting pot of different cultures and nationalities which inspired her to start with traditional art like Pen and Ink. This style had blended into her practice now with how meticulous in details she is in all her work. With being exposed to the culture that has been preserved and details of Arabian traditional styles from venturing to mosques, sightseeing cultural attractions, and day-to-day areas that are rich in the country’s culture, she slowly infused it unconsciously in her works.
She started doing art at the tender age of 4, joining all-around summer camps and art clubs that were mixed with other nationalities. After dabbling in sports and games throughout her childhood, she rediscovered her love for the arts when she turned 10 after joining a school field trip to different heritage museums and an Arabian cultural expo.
In 2011, she studied Information Technology at Silliman University and once again, rediscovered her love and passion for art when she underwent a Multimedia Systems Class. She shifted to Fine Arts but left after a year to go back to Abu Dhabi for work. While working, she practiced traditional art styles like sketching and painting all the while visiting various art exhibitions, cultural museums and sites, bazaars, and even the Louvre Museum which made her further expand her interests and knowledge for the arts. She went back to Dumaguete in 2018 and continued her course.
Princess’ evolution into different types of styles and methods from her course in Studio Arts allowed her to extend the range of her skills even further with how eager she is to learn anything that she is given an opportunity to do. She believes that Art is a form of performative and visual language that is an essential contribution to creating a new narrative around any particular issue or topic. It is a cultural tool that is able to help humanize feelings, emotions, and fears. Art continues to be relevant, no matter what medium, style, or resources are used to showcase it.