NATIONAL ARTS MONTH 2025

Dimiao aspiring young artists

Exhibit works at Capitol lobby

TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol, Feb 18 (PIA)— An group of young artists from quaint town of Dimiao, brings art to new height literally as they take to the new Capitol lobby for the National Arts Month painting exhibit which runs until March, 2025.

The group, called Dimiao Young Aspiring Visual Artists (DYAVA) only started in the lockdown of 2020, when three local aspiring artists: Eljohn Balaba from Barangay Pagsa, Angelie Lagura from Guindaguitan, and Jason Tabiliran from Baguhan, all inspired by their environments away from the town center, too to the brush and posted their artworks online, to motivate other young artists to let their creative energies flow in times of helplessness.

That time, many young local artists were also starting to post their drawings as a way of passing time while confined in their homes, Balaba, DJAVA co-founder who is on his fifth year taking up architecture at the Bohol Island State University shared.

Using all available materials in their homes, local artists came out with arts of different medium: charcoal, graphite, colored pencils, crayons, watercolor and even coffee.

Beginners but hoping to develop and strengthen their crafts and skill sets, they created an online group where chat is available to everyone who aspire to learn about the arts and who intend to be a good artists.

Every week then, we organized art challenges to put in a venue for everyone to practice and present their works, and we exchanged ideas on how to enhance the work, DYAVA members admitted.

While the weekly challenges continued for a few months, established local artists in the town added more sessions especially plein aire, or outdoor art sessions, to develop the artists’ appreciation and understanding of color gradients in their canvasses, shared local artist Omar Vincent Dagdayan.

Other established local artists also rendered live sessions, dished out tricks of the trade, for a much better rendering of the artworks.

During the approaching town foundation day when the lockdown was lifted, we decided to preset the group to the mayor and perhaps ask him if we could put up a short exhibit by creating a gallery in the town hall.

We told him that the artworks for display are all those the aspiring young artists created during the lockdown. The mayor was excited about the exhibit and he obliged to help us put up the first DJAVA art exhibit, Balaba said.

Since then, we have made it a practice and is now becoming a tradition for DJAVA artists to showcase their masterpieces every time Dimiao fiesta comes.

This as the mayor lent us municipal tourism officer designate Virgilio Laguitao as coordinator and group adviser, Balaba added.

I came to the town hall and saw the exhibits, noticed the quality and the manner these were done and as to standards, I would say that they are already quite well, narrated visual artists and photographer Sherwin Sapong, who, being connected with the Center for Culture and Arts Development (CCAD) of the Office of the Governor or the Province of Bohol, we deemed it fitting to bring this to the Capitol for the Arts Month.

Bohol Arts and Cultural Heritage Council Chairman Argeo Melisimo, in his message during the exhibit ribbon cutting, could not contain his excitement, and stressed that the creative arts in Bohol has to transcend the level of production into selling so people can start making money and get compensated for their skills.

Aside from the CCAD, BACH Council, the Provincial Government of Bohol, Municipality of Dimiao and the DYAVA, the Arts Month painting exhibit is also in partnership with the National Commission for Culture and the Arts. (RAHC/PIA-7/Bohol)

DYAVA CO-FOUNDER. Eljohn Balaba, whose inspiration comes from nature, said DYAVA started as a loose online group in 2020 before coming out physically for local art exhibits.

ARTS THAT COMPENSATES. BACH Chair Argeo Melisimo believes that arts should also be there to allow the artists to earn, to sustain. (PIABohol)

DYAVA with PARTNERS. Sponsors and partners joing the young DIMIAO artists during the opening of the exhibits to commemorate the Arts Month. (PIABohol)

RURAL SCENE. The centerpiece of the Arts Month Exhibit is this street scene performed by Eljohn Balaba. Other themes in the exhibit include Bohol as the country’s first geo-park, Bohol Life and other universal themes. (PIABohol)