Tsupet, a photo documentary series on the interesting lives of Filipino gays who staff beauty parlors, was showcased at the 2nd Quanzhou International Image Biennial at the Fujian Huaguang Photographic Art Museum in China.
Themed We Learn the Rules in Order to Break Them, the exhibition is an assemblage of entries from 40 international arts and design institutions.
It serves as an exploration of the differences and similarities of artists under various conditions.
Organized by a roster of photography educators from across the globe, it is an exchange program where participants and viewers alike can earn a broader perspective of different communities through diverse lenses.
Each of the featured work displays personal and independent stances and imaginations towards the world.
It is a collective study of the biennial’s core value where artists build their basic rules of creation from their own practice, before absorbing the experience of others and embodying the restriction of rules and tolerance of no regulations.
Following the theme, young creative Lou Russell Fajardo, a Photography student from the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) School of New Media Arts, captured slices of lives of Filipino parloristas in a series of vibrant pictures.
Fajardo, who is part of the LGBTQIA+ community, believes that his subjects “do not get enough recognition” and highlights their role as an inspiration for those who remain in the closet.
“Behind these individuals who are often found in public city markets are people who have had difficult childhoods full of abuse and discrimination,” he stated.
“With the dream that one day the SOGIE Bill will be passed into law, they look forward to its success and the protection it can provide to the LGBTQIA+ community.”
Born and raised in Pangasinan, the aspiring photojournalist believes in the power of images to shed light on the struggles of the marginalized.
“Through my works, I wish people will see parloristas not as ordinary workers but also human beings molded by experiences,” he expressed.
The 2nd Quanzhou International Image Biennial likewise featured the works of fellow Photography students Jyllan Sydrey Bitalac, Macee Tingson, and Toni Rose Guinto, whose thought-provoking monochromatic works grace the exhibition catalogue.
Among the participating institutions included Accademia di Belle Arti di Bologna, Bandung Institute of Technology, Chiang Mai University, Columbia College Chicago, Copenhagen School for Film and Photography, Elam School of Fine Arts-University of Auckland, Iceland University of the Arts, Kansas City Art Institute, Kyungil University, Massachusetts College of Art and Design and Nanyang Technological University.
Also included in the roster are Randolph College in Ashebero, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Texas State University, Tokyo Polytechnic University, University of Sarajevo, University of the Witwatersrand Johannesburg, University of Zagreb, University College London and Zurich University of the Arts.
Completing the line-up are Royal Academy of Art in The Hague, Lomonosov Moscow State University, British Higher School of Design Moscow and Galperin’s Faculty of Photojournalism the Union Journalists St. Petersburg.