Filipinos live with the mystical more than I think is acknowledged. In urban or rural folklore, there are always spirits tucked just past the edges of our vision. We never meet them in person, but they make themselves known through signs in the spaces we share—we feel them, we never see them.
ASWNG is not a spirit. But he is something of an urban legend himself. In this CLAVEL feature, we sit down with ASWNG: painter, graffiti writer, artist, Capiznon, atbp., to talk about a life of nurturing your passion and letting art take you through uncharted territory.
There’s a lot you can make out about ASWNG from his work. A lover of art and references, his works on canvas are often nods to hip-hop and culture iconography. His love of streetwear comes out in his own airbrushed apparel too, which is well-loved and well-worn by some of our favorite DJs, rappers, and creatives across the archipelago. His art often finds its way onto other surfaces, tattoos on skin and acrylic on fingerboards, for example. But constant in his work is the almost ever-present skeletal character rendered in a rubberhose style—kinda like if Steamboat Willie died and dressed up in thrasher wear. But most famous is his tag—a cartoon skull with wings on either side, fittingly called bungo.
With a mastery over so many mediums, ASWNG possesses the kind of ball knowledge you’d expect from an old head in the scene. The artist himself is a lot more unassuming. A twenty-something kicked back in cuffed denim pants, Airmax 95s, and a North Face jacket, may bitaw si ASWNG. But you wouldn’t be able to single him out in a crowd of his contemporaries. In a way, it works. Helping to keep him away from unwanted eyes (and a vandalism fine or two.)
Young as he is, ASWNG’s mind is older. An early start in the visual arts definitely played a part in how far he’s come. Now based in Los Baños, Laguna, it’s hard to imagine ASWNG as a little kid from Panay Island drawing in the back of the class.
“Tamang nerdo lang sa gilid na nagdo-drawingdrawing ng kung ano-ano. Tapos nung nag senior high siguro nalipat akong city tapos doon ako nagtry ng iba ding art, like realism naman, yung ano ko tinrip ko.”
Moving from Capiz to Iloilo to pursue a degree in fine arts, graffiti came into the mix as something different from the high art ASWNG was learning at school, but came just as naturally. For the multidisciplinary, art is personal. He takes directly from his experiences and leaves a trace of himself in every street corner he tags.
In a world run by masters, the streets become a space to negotiate. For many writers, graffiti is a way to stake claim on their own streets. For ASWNG, graffiti doubles as an outward expression, an impartation onto the space and a way to learn from it in return. Likewise, the artist saw himself as a fan of the scene in Manila first, and only really felt a shift after participating in his first Meeting of Styles this year.
“Isa siya sa mga kine-crave ng art ko na mapuntahan. Gusto niyang lumapag sa kahit anong espasyo, anong canvas.”
From Western Visayas to the Greater Manila Area, ASWNG is a figure loved by artists and admirers alike. It was a big change, but one ASWNG sees as necessary for growth. And the man has been all over this year. With work for clients in events, music, F&B, and more, a humble lineup of exhibitions in galleries across Luzon, and drop after drop of personal experimentations, there’s been no stopping ASWNG.
“Pinu-push ko siya na kung ano pang pwedeng puntahan, pwedeng lapatan, kung paano pa siya mag-evolve”
Some people are born artists. Others meet their craft along the way. Art—however way it meets you—can take you to new places that are unknown, uncertain, but honest to passion and kind to curiosity. ASWNG has spent a life letting art take him where it thrives, but you’d be mistaken to think he’d ever run out of anything to say. His next plans? More spaces, more mediums, and pushing his limits for experimentation.
words by Hannah Manuel
Check out CLAVEL on Facebook, Instagram, and Tiktok for news, culture, and more.
Link
Tweet
Share
