Riel Hilario (1976–2021)

b. 1976

Sculpture

Born in Vigan, Ilocos Sur, Philippines (1976–2021). Born into a family of traditional woodcarvers, he began from the craft of the rebulto—the carved religious icon—and created surreal painted wood sculptures rooted in dreams and the unconscious. In 2012 he received both the Ateneo Art Award and the CCP Thirteen Artists Award, and in 2018 his work was shown at the "Pintôkyo" exhibition in Daikanyama, Tokyo. He passed away from COVID-19 in August 2021, at the age of 44. His works can be seen at the Pintô Art Museum.

Career

- Born 1976 in Vigan, Ilocos Sur (CCP memorial page: Sep 9, 1976 – Aug 4, 2021; the same page also gives Aug 5; some sources give 1969 as his birth year) - Full name: Ronald "Riel" Jaramillo Hilario; fourth-generation woodworker of the Jaramillo family - Education: Philippine High School for the Arts (national scholar, visual arts); studied painting and art history at the University of the Philippines - Awards: Manila Art Awards (2011) / Ateneo Art Award (2012) / CCP Thirteen Artists Award (2012) / national Philippine Art Award (2012) - Residencies: Cité Internationale des Arts, Paris (2012) / Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, New York / Seoul, Amsterdam, Malaysia - Selected solo exhibitions: first solo show, painting (1996) / first series of wood sculptures, Pintô Art Museum (2001) / Boston Gallery (2005) / "Bario Balasan," Artinformal (2010–11) / "Possible Full Body Apparitions," The Drawing Room (2013) / "Skybound Children of the Eternal Sea," Qube Gallery, Cebu (2017) - Service: curator for Boston Gallery and Pintô (seven years) / co-founded Artinformal's education program (2004) / secretary, NCCA National Committee on Art Galleries - Japan: "Pintôkyo," Hillside Terrace Annex, Daikanyama, Tokyo (June 2018), showing "Her Soul is as Light as the Bird" - Collection: Pintô Art Museum, Antipolo