RAFFY T. NAPAY: Woven Dreams

      by Francesca Magtanong

           I grew up in the small boisterous town of Bagong Barrio in Caloocan City. Our town is known to be crime, poverty, population, disorder and chismis laden. Nevertheless, this didn't stop some from rising above it all and become important people in the society. I have a kababata who has done just that and we, townspeople of Bagong Barrio are proud of him. He is Raffy T. Napay, an artist who is making waves as a thread/weaving artist in the Philippine and international art scene. 

           Raffy Tomines Napay, born in 1986 in Pangasinan is a visual artist who took his degree in Fine Arts at Eulogio Amang Rodriguez Institute of Science and Technology in Manila in 2009.

Raffy was born to a simple family who moved to Bagong Barrio Caloocan City after he was born in Pangasinan. His father was a tricycle driver and his mother was a seamstress. He is the middle son among three brothers . Raffy studied elementary and high school at Bagong Barrio Elementary School and Bagong Barrio National High School respectively. After high school, Raffy was not able to pursue tertiary level soon after due to financial constraint. The family income was not enough to support two college students at the time so Raffy had to take the backseat and let his older brother finish college before him. During this time, Raffy spent his time helping his family by being a tricycle driver. The Napays lived along the street of Bagong Barrio  Public Market where pamamasada  is a lucrative source of income. Raffy was plying the market route at dawn and dusk when the deluge of people flooded the marketplace to do their daily food shopping. Raffy never complained and took on the job cheerfully.

Raffy with his parents Delfin, a tricycle driver and Luisa, a seamstress.

The Napays has been the soul of Raffy's artwork.

Two years after, his father approached Raffy and informed him that he could now enroll in college and was asked what course he wanted to pursue. Being very fond of drawing and painting where he was very good at and won him lots of painting competitions at school, Raffy decided to take Fine Arts Major in Advertising and enrolled in Eulogio Amang Rodriguez Institute of Science and Technology, Manila (EARIST). During his 3rd year in college with his exceptional talent already apparent, he was endorsed by one of his professors to the Metrobank painting competition where he won 1^st place. This prestigious award paved the way for Raffy to enter the Philippine art scene and garnered the attention, commendation and respect of art enthusiasts around the country. It was also while he was still in college that he won his first  Juror’s Choice Award of Excellence at the 2008 Philippine Art Awards. After college graduation, Raffy mounted his first two solo exhibits using paint, the first medium he mastered and got famous for.

For the next few years, together with other artist friends, Raffy stayed in a studio in Marikina to work on a handful of projects. The small space and ventilation problem on the studio made him go back to his family’s home in Caloocan where he sought his mother’s instruction and guidance to learn to sew. His mother was a seamstress who at that time was working on rags to support their family. He was thinking and experimenting on new medium to pursue, as painting using paint and oil in confined spaces became suffocating to him and gave him respiratory difficulty.  Soon enough, Raffy began working on new art pieces using thread, fabric and textiles to express his art. This transition and Raffy’s meticulous attention to detail and the poetry conveyed by his work cemented his spot and  prestige in the Philippine art community.

In 2014, Raffy held a solo exhibit in West Gallery, Quezon City featuring his new set of artwork using the new medium he learned from his mother. This gained him his 2^nd Excellence Award at the 2012 Philippine Art Awards. Exhibit after exhibit and award after award showered his career from then on.

One of Raffy's earliest artwork using ink and coffee on paper.

Thread and textile replaced ink and pigment. While Raffy’s previous paintings were remarkable, his thread artwork were breathtaking. His works were detailed and intricate. Each artwork took months and even years to complete. Patience and perseverance were his virtue. While looking at his gigantic artworks, one would wonder how he did it. Raffy was extraordinary. So it was no wonder that big famous galleries showcased his work like Bencab Art Gallery in Baguio, Pinto Art Gallery in Rizal, Cultural Center of the Philippines, and Ateneo Art Gallery. Whenever he held exhibits, famous artists and art enthusiasts paid tribute to his vision and mastery. Some foreign artists, enthusiasts and collectors are patrons of Raffy’s artwork. Known Filipino celebrities and socialites are common sight during his exhibits like Heart Evangelista, Tin and Julius Babao and John Lloyd Cruz. His artwork, no matter how expensive they are, always sell like hotcakes.

The author staring at Raffy's painting at the BenCab Gallery in Baguio.

"Samu't Sariang Kaanyuan" oil on canvas close-up

"Love", thread and cloth on canvas, Pinto Art Gallery, Antipolo Rizal

"Home", thread and cloth on canvas, Pinto Art, Antipolo.
both "Home" and "Love" are 96 x 96 inches in dimension, both are huge artwork!

                             
                                        teaser  of Raffy's 2013 "Home" exhibit at Pinto Art , courtesy of youtube

    

                                

            Raffy has also held exhibits abroad. In 2013, Raffy won the Ateneo Art Awards with his thread exhibit entitled “ Thread Experience”. The award earned him a residency grant in Liverpool Hope University in England where he also held the very same exhibit. In 2015, he was chosen as the recipient of the 2015 Florence Biennale’s International “Lorenzo il Magnifico” Award for Textile Art in Florence, Italy. He travelled to different European  cities to hold exhibits. He holds residency at the Artesan Gallery, Singapore.

author posing with "Family", 2013

"Family" thread and cloth on canvas, exhibited at Ateneo Art Gallery in 2013 where Raffy won the Ateneo Art Award prior to his "Thread Experience" exhibition which earned him residencies abroad

the heart nestled between the branches depicts the shared love the union of parenthood produces, artist revealed

photos taken at Raffy's "Sanctuary" show at Ateneo Art Gallery, 2015
The show had two phases: the Light and Darkness. When lights went out for 15 minutes every hour, the exhibit glowed in the dark. Yes! the threads glowed in the dark and it was a rare spectacle I was so happy to witness, let alone knowing that a dear friend was the one who did it all.

This artwork is very beautiful and big! It eats up an entire wall.

Raffy never forgets his friends no matter how big he has become. He always personally invites me to his exhibits which I never miss. I  always bring my son too to expose him to art at an early age.

glow in the dark, special show

These were Raffy's entries to Philippine Art Fair 2016 where he left his spectators in awe.

                              teaser of Raffy's solo exhibit in Switzerland, 2016, courtesy of youtube

                                    
                                               

1st Prize Lorenzo il Magnifico, Florence Biennale. Florence, Italy 2014 

                Raffy T. Napay has really come a long way from being a humble tricycle driver to being one of the most applauded, respected and marketable artists of the contemporary art period. Someone should see his artwork to fully understand how and why he has achieved the success and recognition he so deserves. What really sets him apart from other artists aside from medium, is his vision. His artwork convey his love for his family and has always been the core value of his artistic vision. The love he has for his parents and brothers is very evident in his work. Even in person, Raffy's love and respect for his family is tangible. Mia, his long time girlfriend since college and soon to be wife, has also been the subject of lots of Raffy's artwork. What better way to profess your love than make art about your lover! I feel so envious!

self portrait with his brothers, charcoal on paper, one of Raffy's earliest works

Raffy with his fiancee Mia.
Mia has also been the subject of most of Raffy's artwork.

               His artwork tell stories of his journey from his childhood to where he is now and show that he never forgets his humble beginning. He makes it a point that his life story be the soul of what he does best. Unlike other paintings/artwork that are complex which are open to a beholder’s own interpretation, Raffy’s artwork are straight forward, well- meaning and spot on. His artwork are visual poetry.

"Death" 

"Stargazing"

 I had the chance to talk to Raffy recently and I told him my curiosity on which of his lots of outstanding artwork is his favorite. Without batting an eye, he led me upstairs to the second floor of their house and showed me this:

THIS IS RAFFY'S SIMPLEST ARTWORK BUT HIS MOST FAVORITE.  He sketched it using just a pencil during his 21st bday. It is an image of the childhood home they were renting until they left it 2 years ago when Raffy was finally able to buy his parents and brothers a big house. Raffy never terminated their lease on this small house because he still wants to keep it and sometimes stay in it. Raffy feels very sentimental towards the house. 

            Raffy never showed this to any of his exhibits or plan to sell it. 

             He also had a favorite thread artwork. But he sold this one to buy a new tricycle for his father. As he put it, " o di ba, artwork na traysikel, kapalit ng totoong traysikel pamasada". Fair enough. 

"Traysikel"
An ode to their old family tricycle, the one that sustained their family for many years.
notice the shadows.

I am proud of Raffy T. Napay. He is a good friend of mine. I used to ride his tricycle when I shopped at the market when I was younger. He always personally invites me to his exhibits. He never changes. He remains down to earth, simple and humble amidst his fame and success. I feel happy that a friend’s  passion, talent and job all work together harmoniously and bring him to his position right now. Raffy is the perfect person whose feet remain on the ground while soaring high above the skies because just like his artwork, the thread that connects him to his roots remains strong.

2018 Cultural Center of the Philippines 13 Artists Awardees includes Raffy Napay.